Punjab Government, in a novel initiative, gathered feedback from the renowned industrial players and employers on their requirement for manpower to frame its policies, especially on skilling youth, according to industry needs, by organising an Employers’ Meet on Tuesday.
“The idea behind setting the stage with employers is to understand the gaps and concerns of industry in the existing labour pool and accordingly tailor the skill development and technical education programmes,” said a Government spokesperson.
The event, attended by known names in the field, covered the key sectors of employment generation such as manufacturing, construction, retail, food processing, hospitality, IT and MSME amongst others.
Indian Council for Research on International Economics’ chairperson Isher Judge Ahluwalia maintained that unemployment is the “most challenging problems” faced by Punjab.
Citing a survey by the labour Bureau, she said that the unemployment rate in Punjab is 16.6 percent as compared to 10 percent for India as a whole. “It’s because economic growth in Punjab has been very slow. Punjab set a benchmark for growth in India, but Punjab missed the bus in 1990s when it failed to create an enabling environment for attracting private investment and employment,” she said.
She added that Punjab needs to create enabling environment, create infrastructure and world-class cities to attract investment.
Maintaining that ‘Ghar Ghar Rozgar’ is an “emergency step”, she stressed that Punjab need to do much more to attract private investment in thrust areas like textiles and logistics. “The public private partnership in infrastructure building would be the ideal way to go ahead in Punjab,” she said.
Tynor Orthotics managing director Dr PJ Singh, expressing his views on ‘MSMEs as a growth engine for employment’, stressed on the need to promote e-commerce and e-education to boost the economy and employment generation.
He said that the need of the hour is to metaphorise small businesses into big ones, while recommending businesses to try e-commerce, which will help the companies grow.
Singh also recommended a paradigm shift in education sector, by providing e-education from world class business schools, mentoring of young entrepreneurs and start-ups by the big business houses.
Monte Carlo’s executive director Sandeep Jain stressed on the need of promotion of home-grown brands and shortage of skilled labour while expressing his concerns over labour shortages.
Walmart India’s president and CEO Krish Iyer projected Punjab’s consumption capacity as an immense scope for growth. He pressed Punjab government to bring a retail policy. “GST has created borderless country. logistics and warehousing along with retail will drive growth, especially in a food growing state like Punjab,” he said.
He said that Punjab is a big consumption state, and there was an immense scope for growth as retail drives consumption and vice-versa.
Sonalika International Tractors limited’s vice-chairman AK Mittal urged the state government not to shut down its power plants, rather run them and provide more power to industry which can help reduce power rates, something Punjab Government has committed to, besides helping to revive the sick Mandi Gobindgarh industry.