On June 3, Saturday, the Karnataka Government issued guidelines for implementing the Yuva Nidhi scheme to provide financial assistance to unemployed youth. It is one of the five guarantees that the Congress had announced in the run-up to the elections and on Friday, the state government announced the details of the roll-out.
What will this do to unemployed youth?
Kannadigas (domicile of Karnataka), who haven't bagged a job six months after completing their degrees or diplomas in 2022-23 will be eligible for monthly financial assistance of Rs 3,000 and Rs 1,500, respectively, for two years. It will be halted if they get a job within two years and those who fail to provide correct information about their employment status will be penalised, the government warned, as stated in online reports.
Reactions from youth
The General Secretary of Karnataka State Competitive Examination Aspirants Association (KSCEAA) and civil services aspirant Manjunatha T said, "Yuva Nidhi as a scheme empowers poor students both from humanities and technical educational backgrounds. These allowances empower few of them to acquire skill sets apart from those that they picked up while pursuing their degrees to meet the demand of the market and emerge as valuable assets of the economy."
Additionally, "These allowances help many of them to meet the expenditures required for competitive examination preparations and also save youngsters from becoming victims of underemployment's consequences," he added. Further, "It is prudent to view this scheme from the viewpoint of empowering youngsters which is indeed good for the economy," he added.
However, "Most of the aspirants expect this Yuva Nidhi scheme to extend beyond so as to include all the youngsters who are graduated/diploma holders and unemployed between 18-25 years," he stressed.
Youths words
A 2017 pass out from Hassan district, on the condition of anonymity, said, "We don't want Rs 3,000, we want jobs." Further, he claimed that since 2017, there has been no single notification for Karnataka Administrative Services (KAS). Agitated and frustrated by this, "I started teaching for the past two years," he shares.
Sharing views on the Yuva Nidhi scheme, he said, "Even though the outgoing graduates will benefit from this scheme, this will make them lazy. Moreover, the students who graduate in October are eligible but the scheme will be implemented only after six months, so again what about these six months?" he questions.
Similarly, another aspirant who is preparing for UPSC (Union Public Service Commission), Navya C, told EdexLive, "I am a pass out of the 2017 batch and I have lost my job during the pandemic. There are many like me who are in the same boat."
"Even though the government fills the vacancies, it is beneficial for new batches. Instead, the Yuva Nidhi scheme should also include graduates from the last four to five years," she stresses.
On the other hand, Neha H who is pursuing her Master's in Bharatanatyam, said, "It is a good way but has its own pros and cons." Briefing more about this, she said, "Instead of giving Rs 3,000 and making youth idle, the government can provide internships or certificate courses." This will help the youth in getting jobs easily, she adds.
