'What can govt do if people apply for jobs': Bihar minister on five lakh people applying for Group D posts

After five lakh people applied for 166 Group-D posts in Bihar, many opposition parties including Congress blamed the BJP-JDU led government in the state for the growing 'unemployment' which lead to this situation.

However, a Bihar minister belonging to Janata Dal (United) Shrawan Kumar on Saturday responded to the accusations saying, "what can government do if people apply for jobs?"

"People apply for jobs on their own accord. What can the government do? It's not like the government tells them to apply for a particular job. The only thing the government can do is ensure the meritorious applicants are selected," ANI quoted Shrawan Kumar as saying.

He also subtly blamed 'tough competition' for the problem. "While it is worrisome, the entire world is going through a phase of tough competition," he said.

The five lakh applicants applied for 166 Group-D posts to work as peons, gardeners, and gatekeepers, cleaners in Bihar Vidhan Sabha.

Many candidates who applied for these posts stated that unemployment was the major reason for filing these applications.

Yesterday, Amit Jaiswal, a postgraduate student in English, told ANI that a higher education degree doesn't guarantee a basic salary of Rs 10,000 in the private sector.

Another aspirant told ANI that the youth prefer government jobs over private jobs.

The five lakh applicants applying for these jobs are mostly MBA and MCA degree holders, graduates, post-graduates.

Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) MLA Anwar Alam held the BJP-JDU government for the rising unemployment in the state. He said, "This situation shows that unemployment in the state is at an alarming level. I believe that the government is responsible for this situation in the state.”

Congress leader Prem Chandra Mishra also blamed the government for the current situation. “Somewhere there is a job crisis and a state of unemployment in Bihar. Hence the people holding MBA and BCA degrees are applying for Group D jobs,” He said.

“Youths with higher qualifications are ready to work as peons. Nothing can be more unfortunate than this. People from other states like Madhya Pradesh and Jharkhand are also coming here for jobs, which means that even these states are reeling under unemployment,” he added.