Unemployment In Madhya Pradesh: A Tale Of Contradictory Claims?

Discrepancies in the number of unemployed people in Madhya Pradesh – the state government’s figures are nearly 7.6 lakh less than its Economic Survey – have raised eyebrows.

According to the state government, responding to a question in the Assembly, the number of unemployed people had fallen from 35.73 lakh last year to 25.82 lakh this year. However, the Economic Survey says there are 33.13 lakh registered unemployed people in the state.

This discrepancy has cast doubts over the actual employment situation in the state, particularly as there are thousands of engineers, doctors, and MBA graduates among the registered jobless.

Government’s Claim: Reduction in Joblessness

The state claims the number of unemployed, counted for a 12-month period from May last year, fell by nearly 10 lakh, and that 2.32 lakh people secured government jobs over the past three years.

The data was presented by Skill Development and Employment Minister Gautam Tetwal – in response to a question by Congress MLA Bala Bachchan – on the first day of the budget session.

Mr Tetwal’s revelation raised a significant question.

The number of highly-educated unemployed youths is also concerning.

There are over 1.22 lakh engineers, 3,600 MBBS degree-holders, and 16,000 MBA professionals, as well as more than 8.75 lakh graduates without jobs.

And, according to the Department of Technical Education, Skill Development, and Employment, as of May 31 there are nearly 2.6 lakh registered applicants, of whom nearly 1.5 lakh are postgraduates.

Around 39 per cent of these applicants are from Other Backward Classes, followed by around 27 per cent from general categories, 18 from Scheduled Castes, and 15 from Scheduled Tribes. What is not unexpected is the skewed gender ratio, with male applicants outnumber female in every category.

District-Wise Data

Some districts claim to have notably low unemployment. For example, Pandhurna says it has only nine people, while Maihar says it has 25, and Mauganj 144 registered as ‘unemployed youths’.

Government’s Claim: 232,000 Offers in 3 Years

According to job offers provided through employment fairs from July 2021 claims 2.32 lakh people received letters. Over 1.11 lakh offers were issued in 2021/22 but this number has fallen since, with 68,098 in 22/23 and only 52,846 offers in 23/24. No offers have been made since, till May 31.

Expenditure on Skill Development, Jobs Schemes

The government has spent crores on technical education, skill development, and employment, the issue persists, but funding has gone down from Rs 1,711.67 lakh in 2017/18 to Rs 1,591.72 in 23/24.

The Big Question

Where did the remaining 758,000 unemployed individuals go?

Understanding the gap between the government’s claims and the reality is crucial. It is also essential to investigate if those removed from the list genuinely secured jobs or had their names removed.

Mr Tetwal has said individuals who registered for employment are not necessarily unemployed. The registration period is three years, after which they must re-register. Those who secure employment in that period have their registration removed, causing fluctuations in the figures.

Registered individuals automatically get listed for vacancies and, once they secure jobs, the numbers decrease. This is a standard process in which the figures do fluctuate over three years.

Opposition’s Attacks

Congress MLA RK Dogne, however, has accused the ruling BJP of misleading the public.

According to him, the claims of jobs to over two lakh individual hides the fate of the rest. He accused the government of providing false information in the Assembly and shutting down employment guarantee schemes, causing hardship to the common man and the poor. Dogne alleged the government is trying to hide the rising unemployment by discontinuing job-providing schemes.