IMPHAL, September 29: The minimum and maximum wages of employees working under the private sector in Manipur should be set and they should not be underpaid, stated Chief Minister O Ibobi.
He was delivering a speech as the chief guest in the skill development workshop organised by the State labour & employment department today at the Sangai Hall in Hotel Imphal. The workshop was also attended by State Labour & Employment minister I Hemochandra Singh as the president and Addl. Chief Secretary Nikhilesh Jha and National Skill Development Agency director general JP Rai as guests of honour.
The CM in his speech said that he was glad to be a part of the first and biggest Skill Development workshop ever in Manipur organised by the State labour & employment department.
He also expressed his optimism that the NSDA would extend support to the educated unemployed youths of the State.
Further stating that during his last visit to Delhi, he came across many students of Manipur who had completed their studies but were still confused of what to do next. He however ruminated that this might be the issue faced in other parts of the country too.
Ibobi said that in his various tours across many countries including Japan and China he enquired from officials of those countries about their national average employment statistics.
The current unemployment rate in China is surprisingly less than 4% and if the youths of China are not hesitant about working in rural area, the unemployment in China could be below 2%, he said he was told.
Veering to a different topic, the CM said until the new Land Requisition Act and Forest & Environment Clearance are not modified projects related to Hydel Power cannot be initiated.
The Government has difficulties in addressing the unemployment problem in the State, the CM said, adding that the Government is working on a war footing to address the problem.
Expressing optimism that the skill development workshop will help impart employment to the youths of the State in various sectors, Ibobi stressed that it was next to impossible to provide white collar jobs to all.
Highly paid officials are not punctual while coming to office and many of the officers utilised their working hours to pursue personal businesses and commitments, the CM lamented.
In the Public Works Department alone, around 3000 labourers are engaged in contractual work, and despite the workers failing to do their duties, they demand regular wages, he said, adding that the same category of people works for the Imphal Municipal Council.
ICM has a similar problem, the employees are more interested in staging dharnas demanding salaries commensurate with what the six pay commission has fixed, he added.
`Everybody in the State lacks a work culture including myself,` the CM said drawing a huge round of applause from the audience.
Narrating that even though privatisation of the State Electricity department has made the officers more efficient, the CM in good humour said that resignation letters of those officers who are adept at not attending office have also piled up.
Biometrics system will be installed in all the departments of the State to regulate the attendance of the government employees, the CM stressed urging people in the State to fast develop a work culture. Ibobi implored private entrepreneurs to refrain from underpaying their employees and exploiting them.