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Telangana Elections: Congress keenly focuses on securing the votes of ‘unemployed youth’

8 months ago
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The Telangana Congress party, confident in securing power in the upcoming elections, is strategically targeting the youth vote bank. The party is emphasizing issues such as unemployment and the failure in conducting the TSPSC Group-1 exams, directing its criticism towards the ruling party. TPCC President Revanth Reddy is actively voicing support for the unemployed youth during the election campaign, aiming to sway them in favor of the Congress. In Telangana, the 18-29 age group comprises over 73 lakh voters, while the 30-39 age group has 92,93,392 voters. These demographics are expected to play a crucial role in determining the electoral results.

While addressing the ‘Congress Vijayabheri’ public meeting in the Station Ghanpur constituency, Revanth Reddy made sensational comments. He asserted that if the BRS party comes back into power, 30 lakh unemployed youth might join forces with Maoists. He further claimed that if this were to happen, nobody will remain in BRS party as that youth kill them. Reddy emphasized that unemployed youth had played a significant role in the forefront during the statehood movement for Telangana. However, he argued that since the formation of Telangana, the BRS government has failed to provide any benefits to them.

According to Reddy, the government’s lack of focus on job recruitments has led to the aging of unemployed youth who are facing difficulties in getting married. He added that some unemployed youth, losing confidence due to the government’s failure to conduct TSPSC exams, have resorted to committing suicides. Reddy warned that if the Telangana public does not vote for the Congress party, they may witness the return of what he termed as ‘KCR’s Nizam rule.

Congress launches ‘Nirudyoga Chaitanya Bus Yatra’

To connect with the youth of Telangana, the Congress party has initiated the ‘Nirudyoga Chaitanya Bus Yatra’ starting today. Professors Haragopal, Kodandaram, Riyaz, and retired IAS officer Akunuri Murali commenced the campaign by flagging off the bus yatra. This outreach effort will span across the state of Telangana until November 25th, covering 100 constituencies over a period of 10 days.

The Congress has organised two buses for this yatra, one dedicated to North Telangana and the other to South Telangana. Each bus will visit five constituencies daily. AICC President Mallikarjun Kharge, MP Rahul Gandhi, and UP Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi are going to participate in this bus yatra in the coming days.

KTR’s stance on Jobs and unemployed youth

‘Water-Funds-Jobs’ is the agenda of the separate Telangana demand. Leaders were emphasised in the Telangana movement that the fair distribution of resources in the water, funds, and job opportunities is possible only in the separate state. Minister KTR has recently stated that they have provided over 1.60 lakh jobs, with an additional 70 thousand job recruitments in the pipeline. However, he acknowledged that accommodating all youth in government jobs, which currently number only 2–3 lakhs, is not feasible. According to KTR, it is a challenge for any government to offer more than 2-3% of government jobs, especially when considering the entire country with a population of over 140 crores, where only 59 lakh central government jobs are available.

KTR highlighted efforts to address unemployment among Telangana youth by extending IT hubs to Tier 2 cities such as Karimnagar, Warangal, Nalgonda, Nizamabad, and Khammam. He noted that in 2013, Hyderabad had 3 lakh IT jobs, a number that has since risen to 10 lakh. IT exports also saw significant growth, increasing from Rs. 57 thousand crores in 2013 to Rs. 2.47 lakh crores. However, he said they do not have data on how many Telangana youth are working in the IT sector of Hyderabad.

To tackle local unemployment, KTR suggested the possibility of implementing local reservation quotas in the private sector. However, he cautioned against potential pitfalls by citing instances where cities like Gurugram in Haryana faced challenges in attracting investments after adopting such policies. He said unemployment is not only Telangana’s problem, but the entire world is also facing this challenge. He mentioned that there is a population of 140 crore in the country, and only 59 lakh central government jobs are there; it is highly impossible to give every youth a government job.

Also Read: Telangana Elections: Anti-Incumbency, Kaleshwaram, And More: KTR’s Answers On Key Issues

KTR outlined initiatives encouraging companies to hire based on skills, with a focus on prioritizing local youth in semi-skilled and unskilled areas. He said their government proposed providing incentives to companies offering more than 80% of opportunities to local youth. KTR appealed to the Telangana youth not to be swayed by opposition claims, pointing out that the current government has provided significantly more jobs compared to previous administrations. He assured that if re-elected, the government is committed to presenting an annual job calendar, addressing mistakes, and revamping the Telangana State Public Service Commission (TSPSC). KTR also highlighted the government’s proactive response to the TSPSC paper leakage issue, emphasizing their commitment to transparency and accountability.

In line with this, Harish Rao mentioned in an interview that previously there was a 40% quota for non-locals in government jobs. In order to allocate 95% of jobs to locals, they waited for two years to obtain relevant presidential orders. This delay also contributed to the issuance of notifications occurring late.

Unemployed youth unhappy over BRS government!

Following the TSPSC paper leakage and the postponement of Group 2 exams, there has been a surge of dissatisfaction among the unemployed youth towards the government. Videos circulating on social media and public opinions on the upcoming elections reflect the frustration of unemployed youth who openly declare their opposition to the government for failing to meet their expectations. Social media influencer Shirisha, known as Barrelakka, gained fame for criticising the government’s handling of job notifications and is now contesting the elections independently from the Kollapur constituency. She said as a representative of unemployed youth in Telangana, she is going to contest this election against the government.

Congress efforts for unemployed youth votes

Focusing on the discontent among unemployed youth with the BRS government, the Congress party is actively reaching out to them. In May of this year, Congress unveiled the ‘Youth Declaration,’ pledging to generate 2 lakh jobs in the first year of their tenure. Their proposed agenda includes a yearly job calendar, a monthly stipend of Rs. 4000 for unemployed youth, ensuring transperant recruitments like the UPSC, providing 75% jobs to local youth in industries, and providing Rs. 10 lakh interest-free loans to youth. Noteworthy intellectuals such as Professor Haragopal and retired IAS Akunuri Murali are supporting the Congress party, while some leftist intellectuals are extending indirect support.

Congress is actively participating in a field campaign, aggressively criticizing the BRS government both on the ground and through digital campaigns. On the other hand, KCR, who has been facing criticism from the opposition for fails to address the concerns of unemployed youth directly. It remains to be seen how much these factors will influence the fortunes of the Congress party in the upcoming elections.

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