Former minister and Congress leader Geeta Bhukkal on Monday trained guns on the BJP government in Haryana on the Saksham Yuva scheme, alleging that educated youths were asked to perform "menial tasks".
Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar said the scheme was not any kind of employment for the youths and the work was being given to keep them busy.
Bhukkal sought the details of the scheme and district wise number of beneficiaries in the state during the Question Hour in the ongoing budget session of state assembly here.
The Educated Youth Allowance and Honorarium Scheme-2016', also called the Saksham Yuva Yojana, was launched by the BJP government in Haryana on November 1, 2016, for eligible post-graduates of the state and was later extended to gradually include eligible science, engineering and science equivalent graduates.
An unemployment allowance of Rs 3,000 per month is given to eligible post-graduates and Rs 1,500 to graduates. An honorarium of Rs 6,000 per month is given in lieu of 100 hours of work to the post-graduates and graduates.
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Bhukkal said despite being well qualified the unemployed youth, who get themselves registered under this scheme, are being given "menial tasks to perform" to get Rs 6,000 honorarium.
"The government should give them duty and responsibility as per their qualification," Bhukkal added.
Khattar informed the House that the work should not be treated as employment.
"We had said in our manifesto that we will give them honorarium in lieu of 100 hours of honorary work. Now, what kind of work this will be this was not defined. The idea is to keep them busy and give them honorarium because after receiving education if they sit at home they will be a burden on their parents and will feel dejected.
"This is an assistance which we are giving them for three years so that they are able to stand up on their own and become gainfully employed," he said.
"We have said that even if we do not have any real work to be allotted, we will still give them something to keep them busy. Like, to keep her newly wedded daughter-in-law busy, her mother-in-law will somehow find some work for her, even if that is just for the sake to keep her busy. So, to keep them (the unemployed youth) busy for 100 hours, we will find some work for them.There is no question of employment in this," Khatter added.
The chief minister said they had received 89,000 applications, out of which 74,000 were approved.
Out of this 56,000 youths have been given some work while 13,000 have left after getting jobs, he said.
However, Bhukkal was not satisfied with the chief minister's reply.
"The chief minister gave example of daughter-in-law and mother-in-law. But that is not the relation which the government and unemployed youth have. It is the duty and the responsibility of the government to provide employment to unemployed youth and give them work as per their qualification," she said.
Meanwhile, ruling BJP MLA Aseem Goel caused an embarrassment to his own government when he said nothing had been done on the demand raised by him three years ago whereas things had been expedited when another ruling party legislator from the neighbouring constituency raised similar demand merely six months ago.
Goel, the MLA from Ambala City, expressed his displeasure when he was told by cabinet minister Rao Narbir Singh that there was no proposal under consideration of the state government to build a temperature-controlled swimming pool and a synthetic track in Rajiv Gandhi stadium of Ambala City.
He had raised a question about the swimming pool during the Question Hour.
Rao Narbir while pointing towards Health and Sports Minister Anil Vij, who is MLA from neighbouring Ambala Cantt constituency and was present in the House, told Goel that being a Minister, Vij might have got the thing approved quickly for his constituency.
"I am finding myself caught in between two of you (Goel and Vij)," said Narbir, adding that having another temperature-controlled swimming pool in close proximity of the other was not feasible.
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