Kharge: Youth will spell BJP's poll defeat as unemployment rate in J&K is 28.2%

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Sunday said "deception" was the only policy of BJP for the youth of Jammu and Kashmir and that they will show the door to "PM Narendra Modi and company" in the upcoming polls. Elections to the 90-member J&K assembly will be held in three phases from Sept and results will be declared on Oct 8.

In a post on X, the Congress chief cited Periodic Labour Force Survey data to claim that "youth unemployment rate in J&K as on March 2024 is a staggering 28.2%". "Many exam paper leaks, bribes and rampant corruption have delayed hiring across departments for four years now. An astounding 65% of government department posts in J&K remain vacant since 2019," he added. He said that in J&K, over 60,000 govt daily wagers have been toiling for more than 15 years, earning a mea- gre Rs 300 per day. Kharge said that even though BJP promised industry in J&K, the state had no major manufacturing units.