Condemning the Congress-led Punjab Government’s decision to fill vacant posts in the Revenue Department from among retired Patwaris saying vacant posts in all departments should be filled with new recruits, the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) on Tuesday called for immediate regularization of 27,000 contractual employees on the pattern passed by the earlier SAD-BJP government.
“It is shocking that instead of hiring 1,300 youth in the Revenue Department to fill up vacancies, the government has decided to hire retired Patwaris on these posts,” said the former minister Bikram Singh Majithia.
Asking the government not to befool youth with excuses that commissioning of new Patwaris after their training would take time, Majithia said: “What is stopping the Congress Government from starting this process when it took over the reins of the State two and half years ago?”
He said that the Government bulldozed its way through rules and regulations to appoint an “over aged” grandson of former Chief Minister Beant Singh as DSP immediately after coming to power, but did have time till now to appoint deserving youth on vacant posts.
Stating that the Congress Government had deceived the youth with slogans like ‘ghar ghar naukari’ and introduction of an unemployment allowance of Rs 2,500 per month, Majithia said that the government was at its half way mark but had still done nothing to fulfil any of the promises made to the youth.
Majithia declared that the SAD would take on the Congress Government and force it to implement all promises made to the youth.
“Dramas in the name of placement drives will not do. We want youth to be given jobs as promised by the Congress party. We will organize a State level movement to force the government to keep its word,” said Majithia.