Huge employment opportunities coming up in Bengal, says West Bengal CM Mamata

Kolkata: The West Bengal government on Tuesday said it would appoint two lakh people in various positions like teachers and Group-C, Group-D staff in government offices in the state.

Announcing the decision, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said that a decision in this regard was taken in a state cabinet meeting on Tuesday.

Emerging from the cabinet meeting, the chief minister said, "The two lakh appointments to be made included, among others, 70,000 teachers and 60,000 each in Group-C and Group-D staff in government offices."

Even as the time-frame for appointment of two lakh people has not been specified, the chief minister said that the process had already begun.

In another decision, the state cabinet has approved a hike in the salary of those in the Civic Police Volunteer Force (CPVF) from Rs 2,800 per month to Rs 5,500 per month with an immediate effect, Banerjee said.

Besides, the CPVF personnel would now be entitled to get 14 days' leave annually, she said adding there was a demand for some holidays at least for the CPVF personnel, as no holidays were there earlier for them.

The chief Minister also said that 10 per cent of the CPVF personnel would be appointed as Home Guards in future on the basis of their performance, as is being done in the cases of appointment as teachers from para-teachers.

Banerjee further said that in addition employment opportunity for about 23 lakh people in her state would be created in the MSME sector alone in the next two years.

Of them, appointments would be given to nearly six lakh skilled labour, she said.

Out of 23 lakh employment opportunities projected by the government in the next two years in the MSME sector, Banerjee said that six lakh people would get jobs in 2015-16 and 17 lakh in 2016-17.

Banerjee pointed out that creation of these massive employment opportunities would be possible because of her government's plan for a fresh investment of Rs 37,000 crore for the development of MSME and Textile sector.

The chief minister had earlier told the state assembly that MSME projects would be set up in joint ventures or through PPP models enabling creation of such huge employment opportunities directly or indirectly.

She had also said that many more MSME clusters and at least ten textile hubs would come up in the state covering several districts to boost the sector.