Over 4 cr registered job seekers in 2004

NEW DELHI: Portraying a dismal scenario of employment opportunities, the Economic Survey on Friday revealed over four crore job seekers, 70 per cent of them educated, registered with employment exchanges in 2004 but the placement was a poor 1.03 lakh in the first eight months of the year.

Listing politically-sensitive West Bengal at the top of job seekers, the survey reminded the government of the Planning Commission''s recommendations of creating employment growth at a higher rate than the increase in the labour force.

These included more public investment in rural areas, enhanced funding to SMEs and large-scale employment in construction sector.

It said among the job seekers, 26 per cent comprised women.

"Rate of growth of employment, on Current Daily Status basis, declined from 2.7 per cent per annum in 1983-1994 to 1.07 per cent in 1994-2000," it said, pointing out that this was "largely attributable" to a near stagnation of employment in agriculture.

"As a result, the share of agriculture in total employment dropped from 60 per cent in 1993-94 to 57 per cent in 1999-2000," it further said.

The survey said the organised sector, which contributes a small 7-8 per cent of the total workforce, saw employment decline by 0.8 per cent in 2003 due to a decline of public sector employment by one per cent.

As on March 31, 2003, the organised sector employment was 27 million of which 69 per cent was in the public sector, it said.