New Delhi: The government has been actively involved in collecting data on vacancies from all PSUs (public sector undertakings). It has also asked all PSUs to prepare a roadmap to fill vacancies to reduce unemployment in the country. Information has been sought by the government regarding vacancies at the entry-level as well as at the senior level, a senior official from a PSU said.

The move comes against the backdrop of opposition parties raising concerns over rising unemployment in the country.

Govt asks PSUs to fill entry-level vacancies by Sept next year

As per the direction, the entry-level vacancies till December this year are required to be filled by August-September next year, the official said.

Filling vacancies in government institutions takes time as appointments are made in a transparent manner by following specified guidelines, the official said. Most PSUs take tests and conduct interviews of interested applicants to see if the candidate meets eligibility criteria.

The official stated that each stage consumes time as aspirants across the country participate in the process.

As per the official data, there were 255 Central Public Sector Enterprises (CPSEs) operating in the country at the end of FY21. Out of the 255 CPSEs, 177 are profit-making and have generated a profit of Rs 1.89 lakh crore during FY21.

Govt asks public sector to create jobs

Last month, the finance ministry convened a meeting with heads of public sector banks and financial institutions to take stock of the employment situation in these entities and their monthly recruitment plan.

The total employee strength of public sector banks peaked at 8.86 lakh during 2012-13. But eventually it declined to 7.80 lakh during 2020-21.

The Public Sector Banks have started issuing advertisements for recruitment. For example, the country's biggest lender State Bank of India (SBI) recently issued advertisements for the recruitment of 1,673 probationary officers.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi in June had asked various government departments and ministries to undertake the recruitment of 10 lakh people on a "mission mode" in the next one-and-a-half-year to address the issue of rising unemployment in the country.

The direction from the Prime Minister came following a review of the status of human resources in all government departments and ministries. The vacancies are likely to be filled before the next general elections to be held in 2024.

Earlier this year, the government had claimed that about 8.72 lakh posts were vacant in various Central government departments as on March 1, 2020. The Indian Railways, being the biggest recruiter in the country, has nearly 2.3 lakh posts vacant.

A month after the Prime Minister's announcement, the Department of Personnel and Training (DOPT) constituted a task force to implement the plan and executed it in mission mode.

According to data from the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE), India's unemployment rate dropped to 6.43 per cent in September due to an increase in workforce participation in both rural and urban areas.