Shimla: The Himachal Pradesh government has assured that all eligible candidates seeking compassionate employment will be provided jobs, with a Cabinet sub-committee set to submit its report within 15 days. However, the opposition BJP has questioned the delays in job allotment and demanded changes in the existing policy, particularly regarding the income limit criteria.
During the Assembly session on Wednesday, the BJP MLAs raised concerns over eligible individuals not receiving jobs, accusing the government of failing to implement compassionate employment effectively. In the absence of Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, Deputy Chief Minister Mukesh Agnihotri defended the government’s position, stating that jobs would be provided based on the committee’s recommendations. Cabinet sub-committee chairman Rohit Thakur assured that the report would be finalized by April 15.
Pending Cases and Existing Policy
The current policy, introduced during the previous BJP government, allows government departments to fill up to 5% of vacancies through compassionate employment. However, several job applications have been rejected due to income criteria that count pension as part of family earnings.
- 1,839 cases of compassionate employment are still pending as of October 31, 2024.
- Departments are following revised guidelines issued on March 7, 2019, to process cases.
- 2,524 applications have been rejected, primarily due to income limit restrictions.
Opposition Demands Policy Changes
Leader of Opposition Jairam Thakur argued that the income limit is the biggest barrier for many eligible candidates. He urged the government to relax the income criteria to ensure more families benefit.
BJP MLA Satpal Singh Satti demanded a new policy to expedite job allotment, while MLA Surendra Shourie pointed out that more cases have been rejected than approved, largely due to income restrictions. MLA Randhir Sharma further stressed that pension should not be included in income calculations, as it unfairly disqualifies many families.
