Punjab govt working to generate jobs, be patient, says Mann

Chandigarh, May 11 (IANS) Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Wednesday asked the protesting youths to bear with the state government as it was sincerely working to complete the modalities so as to ensure that the entire recruitment process may not be stalled due to legal technicalities.

Addressing a gathering here to hand over appointment letters to 2,373 youths after launching a massive recruitment drive to fill 26,754 posts, he wished that such functions - to give appointment letters to the youths - should be held regularly, adding the protesters should at least have patience and wait for some time to enable the government to complete the requisite formalities for issuing appointment letters.

Any action taken in haste for handing over appointment letters to the job aspirants protesting now could be in tight spot in case somebody challenges it in the court, he noted.

Taking a dig at the previous governments, Mann said: "What these governments had been doing in the last two months of their tenure is being done by our government in the initial two months, which amply clears our intentions to provide jobs to the eligible candidates, purely on the basis of merit and their educational qualifications."

Congratulating all those for getting job letters, he asked the ministers concerned to post them near their place of residence so that they could conveniently focus on the new assignment with utmost dedication and sincerity.

On the contrary, the previous governments deliberately posted government employees to far-flung places just to harass them, he claimed.

He, however, asked the youth not to hesitate from joining even at far-off places of posting as the great personalities like former Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh and top film stars Amitabh Bachchan and Shahrukh Khan had left their homes to realise their dreams of excelling in their career.

Conveying a message to the youth, Mann said widespread unemployment in any society leads to anti-social activities and it is the firm commitment to provide enormous job opportunities to the youth so that they should not go astray as an "Idle man's brain is devil's workshop".

Expressing satisfaction over girls outshining boys in getting appointment letters at Wednesday's function, Mann said this reflects the empowerment of women which would further go a long way in enhancing their dignity in society besides eradicating social evils like dowry, gender discrimination, female foeticide etc.

Notably, 2,373 youth were given appointment letters for the posts of SDEs and pump operators in the Water Resources Department, besides as community health officers, staff nurses, ward attendants, etc., in the Health and Family Welfare and the Medical Education and Research Departments.