Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Monday said that any state which wants to hire migrant workers must get an approval from the CM cell of Uttar Pradesh.
Yogi said that he was dissatisfied with the “disgraceful treatment given to the UP migrant workers in different states.” Speaking at a webinar he said “Now if any state needs man power, they shall seek the UP government for approval. Without our permission workers cannot be taken to other states, they will be sent only on the condition that social insurance shall be provided by the respective state. My government will provide social security and insurance to our people (UP residents) because the kind of treatment that was shown to our people is worrisome”
Yogi is clearly not happy with the treatment meted out to migrant workers in different parts of the country. With what has happened to the migrant workers, he has risen to become a protectionist. But how will he settle the job crisis of the migrant workers with such strict hiring rules?
Over 25 lakh migrants have returned to UP since the lockdown. Few days back Yogi’s administration launched the “Pravasi Rahat Mitra” app to identify and track the details of migrants. The app collected data of the returnees such as educational qualification, Aadhar, kind of work the worker was involved in, and COVID19 testing details. Additionally more than 60 types of skills were also included to record the skills of the workers.
With the collected data, the administration has done skill-mapping. Out of 25 lakh, drivers , building decorators , automobile technicians, carpenters , security guards , electricians etc are have been mapped. That being done, the state has now set up Migrant Commission to provide employment based on the educational qualification and skills.
It is to be noted that the UP government came out with the Yuva Hub Scheme in March 2020 with an outlay of ₹1,200 crores aimed at providing employment to thousands of skilled youth .Additionally “CM Apprenticeship Scheme” is also set to provide a stipend of ₹2500 to the youth of the state.
The post-pandemic UP
Investors globally are looking for other geographies to move their operations out from China. Yogi has been keenly attracting investors to UP. Caza Everz’s shoe company Von Gellx has announced to move its base from china to UP post the pandemic. There are few more leather units in China and Brazil with which the Uttar Pradesh government has been in consultations, the state’s MSME, Investment, Export and Textile Minister Sidharth Nath Singh told in an interview recently.
Firms from the US including Master Card , Fredix, Lockheed Martin, Honeywell, Boston Scientific, Cisco systems have been showing interest to invest in UP. Mastercard is keen on exploring opportunities in rural areas of UP by providing the facility of digital payment to small shops (kirana stores). UPS and Fredix have expressed interest to invest in Jewar Airport near Noida and Bostan Scientific has plans to set up a medical equipment plant.
It would be injustice to debunk this as protectionism as the situation warrants a move towards arresting large scale migration of labour. UP could benefit from its active and zealous workforce that has enabled the southern states to prosper for quite some time. With the CM’s latest move, he is making a step towards an Atmanirbhar (self-reliant) UP.