Employment generation opportunities in West Bengal are bleak despite the state's unparalleled human resources, Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari said on Wednesday and highlighted his government's commitment to generating multidimensional employment.
He said heavy industries and ancillary businesses did not come to the state, development of infrastructure such as airports and seaports as well as the MSME sector were ignored under the previous dispensation.
"Employment generation is in a dismal state in West Bengal," the chief minister said and highlighted the state's "unparalleled human resources" to assert that these must be put to good use.
Addressing a Rojgar Mela organised by the Department of Technical Education, Training and Skill Development here, Adhikari also said the huge potential of the state's food processing sector was not nurtured earlier.
"We will ensure development in these sectors. We will open new horizons of employment in West Bengal," the chief minister said and stressed that his government's target is to generate multidimensional employment.
Maintaining the previous TMC dispensation had brought infamy to the state, he said the BJP government will remove political influence from the state's school service and college service commissions.
The Supreme Court had in 2025 declared void recruitment to nearly 26,000 posts in the state's schools owing to illegalities in the process.
"We have already appointed a senior officer of the chief secretary level to the post of School Service Commission chairperson," Adhikari said.
Stating that his government will follow the UPSC model of recruitment to ensure clarity and transparency, he said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Rojgar Mela and employment system will be emulated in the state.
Adhikari said the West Bengal government will assist new entrepreneurs by providing "subsidy-oriented soft loans" that would not require security.
Arguing that academic knowledge alone does not fulfil the requirements in every sector, he told the gathering that apart from government jobs, facilities to train high and semi-skilled professionals will be set up in both state-run and private vocational institutions.
"We will reach newer heights of development in West Bengal if we can turn our younger generation into skilled professionals," the chief minister said.
The chief minister said it pained him that artisans and technicians could not participate in the Central government's Viswakarma Yojana as the previous government in the state did not send applications of 8.65 lakh people for inclusion under the scheme.
"We sent all these applications for inclusion in the Viswakarma Yojana soon after taking over," he said.
Pointing out that a section of private polytechnics and vocational institutes has been commercialised, Adhikari said it will be ensured that these institutions are run transparently and effectively.
"All infrastructural facilities, including teachers and technical support, will be provided to the government-run technical education institutions," he added.
