19 lakh jobless in Gujarat, not 6 lakh: Economist contests chief minister Rupani's claim on organised sector

Hemant Shah, Suresh Mehta, Rohit Shukla

By A Representative
In a fresh calculation, a campaign organization set up ahead of the Gujarat elections, claiming to be not associated with any political party, has said, much against the "tall talk" of employment generation during the biennial Vibrant Gujarat global investment summits, during 2004-15, 43.44 lakh fresh unemployed were registered with Gujarat's Employment Exchanges. Of these only 24.41 lakh people could get employment.
Contesting the figure provided by Gujarat chief minister Vijay Rupani, that there are only six lakh unemployed in the state as of today, economist Prof Hemant Shah, associated with the Lokshahi Bachao Andolan, or Save Democracy Movement, told media in Ahmedabad, "Even if we concede that Employment Exchange figures are true, as many as 19.09 lakh people could not get employment during 2004-15."
Shah said, "Each year fresh unemployed are registered, and the names of those who get jobs are deleted. The total number of new job seekers registered with Employment Exchanges in 2001-02 was 2.52 lakh. Things deteriorated year after year. In 2015-16, the number of those who registered for jobs increased to 6.11 lakh. Of this, job recommendations were made for 5.12 lakh, but only 1.77 lakh, i.e. only 35% people, got jobs."
Pointing out that overwhelming majority of those who register themselves in Employment Exchanges are skilled workers, Shah said, this state of affairs is only of the organised industrial sector, adding, "As for the unorganized sector, we don't have any figures of the people who may be unemployed or underemployed. Nearly 90% of the workforce in Gujarat and India is employed in the unorganized sector, which includes agriculture."
Shah said, poor provision of employment in Gujarat has against the backdrop of huge claims made during the biennial Vibrant Gujarat Global Investors' summits, begun by Narendra Modi as state chief minister in 2003. Thus, he said, figures show, during the 2009 summit an employment potential of 29.81 lakh was announced, followed by 60.69 lakh in 2011.
Addressing media, former BJP chief minister Suresh Mehta blamed the Gujarat government for hiding jobs data in the organised sector after 2010, saying, "The figures show that, as of March 2008, 18.39 lakh people were employed in state and private sector enterprises, which increased to 19.49 lakh in March 2009."
"Thereafter", he said, "The state government only released jobs potential data announced at different Vibrant Gujarat summits. Since 2007, about one crore jobs potential data were announced. If we all jobs potential announced for Special Economic Zones, it comes to 1.16 lakh. On the other hand, we find from whatever figures we have been able to obtain, that jobs increase by 1.5 or 2 lakh per year."
Continued Mehta, "The policy of offering employment to the local people up to 85% of vacancies in industries, including the Tatas Nano Project, has not been implemented. The government is offering relief in lands, water and power supply to the tune of crores of rupees, yet, thr government remains contented merely by issuing notices to such defaulter industries."
Veteran economist Rohit Shukla said, "One of the reasons for tremendous rise in unemployment in Gujarat is attributed to thoughtless, sudden, haphazard and abrupt demonetization and Goods and Services Tax (GST). A major portion of rural and urban population of the state is engaged in sectors such as construction, transport, home based industries, small and tiny sectors etc."
"These people were producing 61% products for the state GDP in the year 1997-98. Presently, its share has come down to 50%. Due to blows of demonetization and GST, 2% reduction is observed in the GDP growth rate. As per one calculation, reduction of 1% in the GDP reflects into 0.75 % reduction in the employment level", he added.

Comments

Babubhai Vaghela said…

UnEmployment Allowance is Desperate Need of Hour to Avail Right to Life Guaranteed by the Constitution of India.

December 01, 2017

Designing the edge, erasing the river: Sabarmati Riverfront and the dissonance between ecology and planning

By Mansee Bal Bhargava, Parth Patel Across India, old black-and-white images of the Sabarmati River are often juxtaposed with vibrant photos of the modern Sabarmati Riverfront. This visual contrast is frequently showcased as a model of development, with the Sabarmati Riverfront serving as a blueprint for over a hundred proposed riverfront projects nationwide. These images are used to forge an implicit public consensus on a singular idea of development—shifting from a messy, evolving relationship between land and water to a rigid, one-time design intervention. The notion of regulating the unregulated has been deeply embedded into public consciousness—especially among city makers, planners, and designers. Urban rivers across India are undergoing a dramatic transformation, not only in terms of their land-water composition but in the very way we understand and define them. Here, we focus on one critical aspect of that transformation: the river’s edge.

Relevance of historical foot marches like Dandi and Salt march in achieving developmental goals in India

By Bharat Dogra India has a great tradition of organizing foot marches, including some which become historically very important, the most obvious example being the Dandi Salt March under the leadership of Mahatma Gandhi which is a very important chapter in the freedom movement of India.

FSSAI defies Supreme Court order on food warning labels, citing 'trade secrets' for withholding vital information

By A Representative India’s food regulator, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), is facing strong criticism for deliberately delaying the implementation of crucial warning labels on High Fat, Sugar, and Salt (HFSS) food products. This comes despite a clear Supreme Court order on April 9, 2025, which mandated the completion of the "entire exercise" within three months. Adding to the controversy, the FSSAI is reportedly hiding expert reports and over 14,000 public comments under the pretext of "trade secrets."

Ecological alarm over pumped storage projects in Western Ghats: Policy analyst writes to PM

By A Representative In a detailed letter addressed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, energy and climate policy analyst Shankar Sharma has raised grave concerns over the escalating approval and construction of Pumped Storage Projects (PSPs) across India’s ecologically fragile river valleys. He has warned that these projects, if pursued unchecked, could result in irreparable damage to the country’s riverine ecology, biodiversity hotspots, and forest wealth—particularly in the Western Ghats.

Bridge collapse near Vadodara fuels demand for urgent repairs in Amreli

By A Representative The tragic collapse of a bridge near Vadodara, which claimed more than 10 lives, has intensified calls from social workers for immediate repairs to a dilapidated and dangerous bridge on the Amreli-Rajkot highway in Amreli district.

Civil rights coalition condemns alleged abduction of activist Samrat Singh by Delhi police

By A Representative The Campaign Against State Repression (CASR), a collective of civil and democratic rights organisations, has strongly condemned what it describes as the illegal abduction of psychologist and social activist Samrat Singh by a team of Delhi Police officials. The incident occurred on the evening of July 12, 2025, at Singh’s residence in Yamunanagar, Haryana.

Radhika’s killing and the illusion of progress: A grim reminder of our communal codes

By Vidya Bhushan Rawat* A young woman, a national-level athlete, was allegedly murdered by her father in Gurugram—initially portrayed as a case of wounded pride, mocked by locals for relying on his daughter's earnings. Yet deeper facts reveal a disturbing contradiction: this father lived comfortably, owning and renting out multiple houses in a posh locality. If he could invest in her education and coaching, why resent her success?

High tree mortality rates in plantation drives: Can deforestation be prevented through CAMPA?

By Raj Kumar Sinha* Our policies—especially those related to forests—are based on the assumption that we can regenerate natural resources after consumption. The Compensatory Afforestation Programme Management and Planning Authority (CAMPA) reflects this idea. But can we truly restore lush green forests after clearing millions of acres? What has CAMPA actually achieved so far?

Primary sources of the underground Naxalite movement (1965–71): An analytical compilation

By Harsh Thakor* Voices from the Underground: Select Naxalite Documents (1965–71) is a compilation of documents and writings related to the Naxalite movement, spanning the period between 1965 and 1992. The collection includes materials not widely available through mainstream publishers and often considered controversial by the state. It is divided into two sections and contains eighteen documents authored by individuals associated with the movement.

Search This Blog