AGARTALA: The youth wing of CPI (M) Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI) Tripura state unit and tribal youth front of the party Tribal Youth Federation (TYF) opposed the merit based employment policy and demanded to change revert back the earlier system of providing job.
In a joint statement of DYFI and TYF said the BJP-IPFT government had taken a strategy to prevent government job to the unemployed in the name to merit based recruitment.
The government was voted to power because they had committed to ensure at least one job to each family but now they are taking different plea.
"The new employment policy will give job opportunity to the comparatively well off families because the children of the rich families in Tripura got better education and opportunity in the urban areas. The poor people in rural could afford best education to the children. Moreover, still in the government system quality of education in rural areas is not up to the mark. So, government job is now limited to a particular class," the statement said.
They also pointed out despite several attempts; many states of the country could not yet able to ensure merit based recruitment through written test for Group D and C categories of employees.
Except a few states these posts have still been filled up with the less meritorious and downtrodden sections but the BJP led government going to formulate the policy without considering the reality.
The government has also decided to cancel the panel of selection for hundreds of posts done by left front government, are waiting for job offer.
The previous government had selected the job aspirants following the procedure of employment policy vetted by the high court and accepted in the state assembly.
Now if those selections are cancelled and invoke new job policy thousands of families will be deprived, they argued.
"We demand government must review their proposed employment policy and incorporate the provisions so that poor and less meritorious youths could able to get unskilled job in the government sector. Tripura doesn't have alternative employment options except govt job and if it will also curtail by so called merit theory, there will be a serious crisis," the statement added.
They suggested leaving some selections of govt job on the basis of need not only by merit.
However, BJP vice president Subal Bhowmik reacted sharply over the statement and criticized that BJP is also not against the job for unskilled and less meritorious people.
But the new government was compelled to adopt the policy because in last 25 years in the name to needy, CPI (M) rehabilitated their cadres in the govt sector without considering their skill and efficiency.
As a result, the administration is suffering seriously and govt decisions are not implemented properly and timely.
The employees since got the job on political consideration without passing through the process of scrutiny of ability most of them have not been able to discharge public service and that affected the common people.
"The government is facing challenge to implement the decision on time because of inefficiency of the employees and lack of work culture in the system adopted by leftists. Moreover, BJP in the manifesto committed to provide employment to each family not govt job. In past two and half months, the government took multiple initiatives to create employment opportunity by developing entrepreneurship and we are very much hopeful," Bhowmik said.
He further argued that for good governance efficient, meritorious and qualified employees are essential in the system; otherwise, the people of Tripura will suffer and state will not develop.