Number of jobless in MP rises by 7L to 28L in one year

New Delhi: The number of registered unemployed educated youth in Madhya Pradesh has grown by seven lakh within a year to 28 lakh while about 34,000 youth got jobs in the same period, chief minister Kamal Nath said in the assembly on Wednesday.

A senior Congress leader told ET that the number of unemployed youth could have risen as they are hopeful of getting jobs under the regime and have registered in large numbers with job exchanges. However, the Congress had also promised a monthly unemployment allowance of Rs 4,000 for youth during the assembly polls last year – a promise that may have prompted the unemployed youth to register in larger numbers, political observers in MP said.

The state government is yet to fulfill that promise and said in the assembly earlier this year that it wasn’t considering the proposal.


“The number of registered educated unemployed in MP in October 2018 was 20,77,222 and in October 2019, it is 27,79,725,” Kamal Nath said. 17,506 youth were picked for jobs in a Job Fairs organised in the last one year while 2,520 youth were picked for jobs during placement drives, Nath said. 13,740 jobs were “created” with setting up of 25 new industries in MP since the CM added.

“MP topped the list in unemployment for 15 years before our government came. The biggest priority of the CM is trying his best to create jobs...,” Congress spokesperson Shobha Oza said.

However, state BJP spokesperson Rajneesh Agrawal said the figures cited by the CM showed unemployment in the state was only growing under the new government. “There are about 3 lakh vacancies in the state government alone which have not been opened. The youth know there is no possibility of getting the unemployment allowance that the Congress had promised,” Agrawal said.