Patna: The year 2024 began on a high note for job aspirants in the state, marked by the distribution of over 1.10 lakh appointment letters to schoolteachers on Jan 13. CM Nitish Kumar and then deputy CM Tejashwi Prasad Yadav presided over the grand event at Gandhi Maidan where 26,000 teachers received their letters. Simultaneously, district ministers handed out letters to 84,000 others. This followed another large-scale recruitment in Nov 2023 when 1.20 lakh teachers were appointed. Together, these two drives resulted in 2.30 lakh schoolteachers joining the workforce within three months.
Veterans recalled socialist icon Karpoori Thakur’s 1978 mass appointment drive for engineers at the same Gandhi Maidan, drawing parallels to the feats of Nitish and Tejashwi. However, Tejashwi’s credit-taking for the job drive created political tensions. During the 2020 elections, he had promised 10 lakh govt jobs if his alliance came to power. Competing with this, BJP leader late Sushil Kumar Modi pledged a combined 30 lakh govt and private sector jobs. Though the NDA initially formed the govt, significant job creation began only after Nitish switched alliances in Aug 2022, forming the Grand Alliance with Tejashwi as deputy CM.
Tejashwi’s celebratory remarks after the Jan appointments strained relations, leading to the collapse of the Grand Alliance on Jan 28, 2024. Nitish returned to the NDA, but questions about employment creation persisted. According to chief secretary Amrit Lal Meena, 4 lakh govt jobs had been created by year-end, including appointments in education, health and police departments. Also, 2.51 lakh previously appointed “niyojit” schoolteachers were re-designated as “special teachers” with govt employee status after clearing competency tests.
Several sectors announced plans to fill vacancies. The BPSC is set to recruit 70,000 more schoolteachers while the health department has set a target to hire 45,000 personnel and the police department nearly 19,300. In his Independence Day speech, Nitish announced a target of 12 lakh govt jobs. However, the demand continues to outpace supply with migration for work and low wages in the private sector remaining persistent issues.
Despite initiatives like ethanol plants and investor summits, the state’s industrial base remains weak. The service sector — hospitality, retail, education, financial services and entertainment — offers some hope but often fails to provide sustainable incomes. Informal self-employment, driven by local consumption patterns, contributes to the state’s economy but lacks stability. Bihar’s employment rate of 34% remains far below the national average of 44%.
Infrastructure development, such as the expansion of roads and highways, is a bright spot. Improved connectivity is creating new markets and local opportunities, offering a glimmer of hope for the state’s burgeoning workforce. While challenges remain, 2024 highlighted the state’s strides in addressing its unemployment crisis, setting the stage for future progress.
Patna: The year 2024 began on a high note for job aspirants in the state, marked by the distribution of over 1.10 lakh appointment letters to schoolteachers on Jan 13. CM Nitish Kumar and then deputy CM Tejashwi Prasad Yadav presided over the grand event at Gandhi Maidan where 26,000 teachers received their letters. Simultaneously, district ministers handed out letters to 84,000 others. This followed another large-scale recruitment in Nov 2023 when 1.20 lakh teachers were appointed. Together, these two drives resulted in 2.30 lakh schoolteachers joining the workforce within three months.
Veterans recalled socialist icon Karpoori Thakur’s 1978 mass appointment drive for engineers at the same Gandhi Maidan, drawing parallels to the feats of Nitish and Tejashwi. However, Tejashwi’s credit-taking for the job drive created political tensions. During the 2020 elections, he had promised 10 lakh govt jobs if his alliance came to power. Competing with this, BJP leader late Sushil Kumar Modi pledged a combined 30 lakh govt and private sector jobs. Though the NDA initially formed the govt, significant job creation began only after Nitish switched alliances in Aug 2022, forming the Grand Alliance with Tejashwi as deputy CM.
Tejashwi’s celebratory remarks after the Jan appointments strained relations, leading to the collapse of the Grand Alliance on Jan 28, 2024. Nitish returned to the NDA, but questions about employment creation persisted. According to chief secretary Amrit Lal Meena, 4 lakh govt jobs had been created by year-end, including appointments in education, health and police departments. Also, 2.51 lakh previously appointed “niyojit” schoolteachers were re-designated as “special teachers” with govt employee status after clearing competency tests.
Several sectors announced plans to fill vacancies. The BPSC is set to recruit 70,000 more schoolteachers while the health department has set a target to hire 45,000 personnel and the police department nearly 19,300. In his Independence Day speech, Nitish announced a target of 12 lakh govt jobs. However, the demand continues to outpace supply with migration for work and low wages in the private sector remaining persistent issues.
Despite initiatives like ethanol plants and investor summits, the state’s industrial base remains weak. The service sector — hospitality, retail, education, financial services and entertainment — offers some hope but often fails to provide sustainable incomes. Informal self-employment, driven by local consumption patterns, contributes to the state’s economy but lacks stability. Bihar’s employment rate of 34% remains far below the national average of 44%.
Infrastructure development, such as the expansion of roads and highways, is a bright spot. Improved connectivity is creating new markets and local opportunities, offering a glimmer of hope for the state’s burgeoning workforce. While challenges remain, 2024 highlighted the state’s strides in addressing its unemployment crisis, setting the stage for future progress.