Karnataka Higher Education and Skill Development Minister CN Ashwath Narayan told the Legisalative Council on Monday that the state government's main focus is not the creation of jobs, but training candidates.
Narayan was responding to a question by Congress MLC BK Hariprasad, who asked about increasing unemployment rate in Bengaluru.
Surveys by private portals have shown that cities like Pune and Hyderabad are way ahead in terms of employment generation compared to Bengaluru, Hariprasad said. "Only 4 per cent of people in Bengaluru get employment opportunity. The city is falling behind in job creation," he said, questioning the government on the efficacy of its skill training programmes.
To this, Narayan said his department's focus was on skilling and not job creation, inviting criticism. "If the government is not interested in job creation, what is the point of skill training," Hariprasad asked in retort.
Meanwhile, even with the government's several skill training programmes, there have not been adequate number of placements, Narayan admitted.
To bridge the gap between training and placements, the government will make use of its "Skill Connect" portal and ensure more placements, he assured.
The Covid-19 situation also affected training with several centres unable to function properly, Narayan pointed out.
As for Bengaluru's unemployment rate, the city has had a faster recovery compared to other cities from the pandemic-induced financial slowdown, he asserted.
According to government data, till date a total of 492 jobs fairs have been conducted in the state through which 65,583 candidates have secured jobs.
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