Govt working on roadmap to fill vacancies in PSUs

The government has sought data on vacancies from all public sector undertakings (PSUs) and asked them to prepare a roadmap to fill those with an aim to reducing unemployment in the country.

Information has been sought by the government regarding vacancies at the entry-level as well as at the senior level, a senior official of a PSU told PTI.

The move comes against the backdrop of Opposition parties raising concerns over rising unemployment in the country.

As per the direction, identified entry-level vacancies till December this year are required to be filled by August-September next year, the official said.

Filling vacancies in government institutions takes time as appointments are made in a transparent manner by following specified guidelines, the official said, adding tests and interviews are conducted based on the advertisement that specifies eligibility criteria.

Each stage consumes time as aspirants across the country participate in the process, the official said.

As per the official data, there were 255 Central Public Sector Enterprises (CPSEs) operating in the country at the end of FY21. Out of the 255 CPSEs, 177 are profit-making and have generated a profit of Rs 1.89 lakh crore during FY21.

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Last month, the finance ministry convened a meeting with heads of public sector banks and financial institutions to take stock of the employment situation in these entities and their monthly recruitment plan.

The total employee strength of public sector banks peaked at 8.86 lakh during 2012-13. It declined to 7.80 lakh during 2020-21.

Banks have started issuing advertisements for recruitment. For example, the country's biggest lender State Bank of India (SBI) recently issued advertisements for the recruitment of 1,673 probationary officers.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi in June had asked various government departments and ministries to undertake the recruitment of 10 lakh people on a "mission mode" in the next one-and-a-half-year amid the opposition's frequent criticism on the issue of unemployment.

The direction from the Prime Minister came following a review of the status of human resources in all government departments and ministries. The vacancies are likely to be filled before the next general elections to be held in 2024.

Earlier this year, the government had said in Parliament that there were about 8.72 lakh posts vacant in various Central government departments as of March 1, 2020. The Indian Railways, being the biggest recruiter in the country, has nearly 2.3 lakh posts vacant.

A month after the Prime Minister's announcement, the Department of Personnel and Training (DOPT) constituted a task force to implement the plan and execute it in mission mode.

India's unemployment rate dropped to 6.43 per cent in September due to an increase in labour participation in the rural and urban areas, according to data from the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE).

During August, India's unemployment rate surged to a one-year high of 8.3 per cent as employment sequentially fell by 2 million to 394.6 million.