The Minister of State for Labour and Employment – Santosh K Gangwar has stoked a fresh controversy after he said north Indians are not qualified enough. Amid a debilitating economic slowdown, Gangwar claimed that there is no lack of employment in the country, but there are few skilled workers, particularly in north India.

What Did The Minister Say?

The minister, while speaking at a book launch event on Modi government’s 100 days in Lucknow’s Bareilly city, said that there is no lack of employment opportunities in the country.

“The recruiters coming to north India often complain that they find very few candidates with the required skills for a specific post. Considering this, the government has laid special emphasis on skill development,” he added.

He also said that he himself is monitoring the situation and also assured that the low employment rate will not be a problem for long and his ministry is working in the direction.

The minister’s comment is in stark contrast to the government’s jobs report that was released in May this year which declared that the country’s unemployment hit an all-time high since the last forty years.

The Opposition Unleashes Scathing Attack

Reacting to the Gangwar’s comment, Congress general secretary -Priyanka Gandhi Vadra has said that the minister is trying to avoid the questions related to unemployment by blaming it over north Indian.

Priyanka took to Twitter and wrote – “ Respected minister, your government is in power for the last 5 years. Jobs creation has not taken place. And those which were there already are being robbed by the inflation brought on by the government. Youngsters are rooting for the government to do something good for them. You want to evade the question by insulting the north Indians. This won’t do.”

मंत्रीजी, 5 साल से ज्यादा आपकी सरकार है। नौकरियाँ पैदा नहीं हुईं। जो नौकरियाँ थीं वो सरकार द्वारा लाई आर्थिक मंदी के चलते छिन रही हैं। नौजवान रास्ता देख रहे हैं कि सरकार कुछ अच्छा करे।

आप उत्तर भारतीयों का अपमान करके बच निकलना चाहते हैं। ये नहीं चलेगा।https://t.co/2f9ZhGmVoT

— Priyanka Gandhi Vadra (@priyankagandhi) September 15, 2019

After Uproar, Gangwar Issues Clarification Statement

After Gangwar’s comment drew a lot of flak from opposition leaders, the minister issued a clarification, claiming that his statement “had a different context.” He said he was actually addressing the efforts undertaken by the Modi government to enhance the skills of people.

“What I said had a different context that there was lack of skills and the government has opened Skill Development Ministry so that children could be trained as per job requirement,” the minister added.

Also Read: Govt Confirms Job Market Not Doing Well; Unemployment Rate At 6.1%, Highest In 45 Years