Opposition exaggerating unemployment figures: CM Manohar Lal Khattar

Khattar asserted that the state economy was in a much better shape than many other in the country and was best in the region.

Haryana chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar on Tuesday said the opposition parties were exaggerating the unemployment figures as there were only about 80,000 graduates and post graduates unemployed in the state as against what was projected by the opposition.

Haryana CM Manohar Lal khattar addressing media during press conference in Mountview in sector 10, Chandigarh. (Photo by Sanjeev Sharma/Hindustan Times)

The chief minister, however, admitted that there is a percentage of unemployed people who are under matric, matric or under graduate but held that it was not more than what the opposition leaders were claiming.

Khattar asserted that the state economy was in a much better shape than many other in the country and was best in the region.

“While the GDP for 2018-19 was 6.8%, in Haryana it was 8.2%. If we take agriculture growth for this period, in country it was 2.9 whereas the state it was 5.5%, industry growth rate was 6.9%, but in Haryana it was 8.6%, in service sector it was 7.5% as against 8.2% in Haryana,” he said during a press briefing.

“Our economic parameters are much better than neighbouring states like Punjab, where employees sometimes don’t get their salaries on time,” he added.

About ₹85,000 crore investments have come into the state which is the highest for the five year period, Khattar said.

Nearly 82,600 youths have been provided with jobs in private companies, he added.

Spelling out steps taken by the state government on employment generation front, Khattar held that besides 70,000 recruitment through staff selection commission and 3,000 through Haryana public service commission, the government had generated job avenues through skill development courses.

“We are also contemplating upon setting up a separate department for human resources development as well as giving job preference to youths of Haryana domicile,” he added.

To the current issue of inconvenience caused to youths due to far-off job examination centres, he held that the “government had decided not to set up a centre close to the candidate’s district, if not the home district in future”.

On the National Register of Citizens, Khattar said he favours its implementation in all state, asserting that the NRC was not an election issue for the BJP.