DYFI terms Karnataka Budget ‘bereft of vision on employment, anti-youth’

Hassan: The Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI) condemned the Rs 4.09 lakh crore budget for 2025-26 presented by the Chief Minister of Karnataka in the House on Friday, saying it was a budget that has disappointed the youth by not creating and ensuring employment opportunities.

“The youth of Karnataka, who are yearning for employment, thought that the Chief Minister would implement an employment policy, but the record 16th budget presented by Siddaramaiah has proven that he does not have any clear vision regarding the security of life of the youth of the state,” a DYFI statement read.

Apart from the intent to appoint 15,000 teachers in the education department, no action has been taken to fill the 2,70,000 vacant posts under the state government, the press release said, adding that the state has not even taken any steps to implement a “youth policy”, which is the need of the hour.

“This is a budget that has disappointed the youth, who are facing an acute problem of unemployment,” it said.

The release, signed by Prithvi M.G., Hassan District Secretary, DYFI, says the proposal to provide career guidance to 2.30 lakh students in government schools/colleges under the My Career, My Choice programme is a welcome step, but the lack of job creation for those who have received career guidance is a cruel joke.

The Karnataka government has proclaimed steps to provide Rs. 50,000 crore in investment and a target of creating 1 lakh new jobs under the Karnataka Clean Mobility Policy 2025-30 and envisaged to provide Rs. 6,970 crore worth incentives to Foxconn, which started with an investment of Rs. 21,911 crore, for its mobile phone manufacturing unit in Bengaluru.

This was expected to create 50,000 jobs and promote innovation and entrepreneurship in other cities besides Bengaluru. 

“The Local Economic Accelerator Program -LEAP launched this year with a grant of Rs. 200 crore proposes to create 5 lakh new jobs, but in the previous budget too, the attractive words of “job creation” and “targets” have proved to be pie in the sky,” the release said.  

Prithvi further said the “youth empowerment” proposed by the government in the budget was just an empty slogan.

The budget document says the government will provide “skill development training”, but it looks like an idea copied from a Central government official textbook, he said, adding that data needs to be shared on how many such youth were trained and how many have found gainful employment as a result.

The Karnataka government seems to be following the Central model of using big words on paper, but little action on ground, the DYFI note said.

The failure to take steps to create employment for the local people by starting agriculture-based, animal husbandry-based industries and local industries is evident in this budget, it said, and added that it has also failed to take steps to implement reservation in the private sector.

In this backdrop, DYFI has decided to protest against this budget and demand that the government form a pro-youth vision for the security and stability of the young.