His Government’s Right Policy Decisions Helped India Tide over Pandemic-Induced Slowdown: Modi
Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, Oct 22: The Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday claimed that when most of the countries in the world were struggling with economic slowdown in the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic, India could tide over the crisis due to the economic and policy decisions taken by his government in the past eight years.
Mr. Modi said when many big economies in the world were struggling and faced an all-time high inflation and unemployment, India leapt forward from the 10th position to become the fifth largest economy in the world. “This has been made possible because in the last eight years we got rid of those shortcomings of the country’s economy which created hindrances,” he said.
Addressing the “Rozgar Mela” after distributing 75,000 appointment letters among government job aspirants, Modi said the Centre was also working on multiple fronts to create maximum job opportunities for youngsters. He also said the government was continuously working towards softening the blow of the economic problems faced by several countries across the world in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“It is a fact that the global situation is not very good. Several large economies are struggling. In several countries, problems such as high inflation and unemployment are at their peak,” PM Modi said. He said the side-effects of the once-in-a-century pandemic will not go away in 100 days.
“But despite this crisis faced the world over, the impact of which is being felt everywhere, India is taking new initiatives and some risks to save our country from being affected by these problems. We are working to soften this impact on our country. It is a challenging job, but with your blessings, we have been protected till now,” Modi said.
The new recruits, selected from across the country, will join 38 ministries or departments of the Government of India. They will join the government at various levels in Group A and B (gazetted), Group B (non-gazetted) and Group C.
The posts on which appointments are being made include Central Armed Force Personnel, Sub Inspectors, Constables, Lower Division Clerk, Stenographers, Personal Assistant, Income Tax Inspectors, and Multi- Tasking Staff among others, according to a statement issued by the government.
These recruitments are being done by the ministries and departments either by themselves or through recruiting agencies such as the UPSC, the SSC and the Railway Recruitment Board. For expeditious recruitment, the selection processes have been simplified and made tech-enabled, the government had said. The prime minister had asked various government departments and ministries in June to recruit 10 lakh people on a “mission mode” in the next year and a half.
Mr Modi had announced in June that the existing 10 lakh vacancies in Central government departments will be filled in mission mode till 2023 ahead of the 2024 general elections.
Addressing the appointees, Mr. Modi said, “We decided that a tradition of giving appointment letters in one go should be started so that a collective temperament of completing projects in a time-bound way develops in departments. I am happy that many NDA-ruled and BJP-ruled states along with the Union Territories will also organise similar Melas.”
He said that completion of the process of selection for the lakhs of vacancies in a few months and issuing appointment letters is an indication of the change that the government system has undergone in the last 7-8 years. He recalled the days when applying for government jobs was a cumbersome process and favouritism and corruption were rampant in selections. He said the steps during the initial years of his government, such as self-attestation and abolition of interviews in Group C and Group D posts of the Central Government, have helped the youth
The data of Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) which has been coming in the past years also shows how much the government’s policies regarding employment have improved the situation. He noted that according to the data that came two days ago, in the month of August this year, about 17 lakh people joined EPFO and have now become a part of the country’s formal economy. He informed that about eight lakh such people are in the age group of 18 to 25 years.
The Prime Minister highlighted the aspect of employment generation through infrastructure creation. He informed that thousands of kilometres of National Highways have been constructed across the country in the last eight years and work is being constantly done across the country on doubling, gauge conversion, and electrification of railway lines.
