Congress General Secretary (Organisation) KC Venugopal on Tuesday stepped up his attacks on the Narendra Modi government on the issue of unemployment and skill development, claiming that 8.7 crore youth are unemployed and only 8.25 per cent of them have the necessary skills to get a job.
In a post on social media platform X, Venugopal said the data exposed the "ugly reality" behind the government's "amrit call" narrative. He said that Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's 'Student Echo' campaign is bringing the concerns and frustrations of the youth to the fore.
Venugopal said, "8.7 crore youth are unemployed! Only 8.25% of them have the skills required for employment!"
"This is the ugly reality of the 'Amrit Call' that Rahul Gandhiji's 'Student Echo' is exposing. That is why we are seeing massive public support for our efforts - it is touching the hearts of the people," he said. He accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of building the government's "good day" narrative on promises that, according to the Congress, could not translate into better employment opportunities.
"People are also well aware of how Modiji's entire PR of 'Achhe Din' was based on lies and cheating the youth," alleged Venugopal, adding that this government has witnessed historic levels of unemployment.
The Congress leader further claimed that the government has failed to create enough jobs and equip the youth with the necessary skills for the labor market, thereby underutilizing India's demographic dividend.
"Those who vowed to transform India after 2014 have delivered historic unemployment and turned India's demographic dividend into a demographic disaster," he said.
Venugopal said the Congress is working to build a broad mass movement against this "anti-youth government", with key issues such as unemployment, education, recruitment exams and skill development featuring prominently in the party's campaign.
"We are building a mass movement against this anti-youth government, and this movement will be the ultimate downfall of Modi and the BJP," he said.
The comments come at a time when the Congress has shifted its focus to issues affecting students and youth. Rahul Gandhi's 'Chhatra Ki Goonj' campaign is being touted by the party as a campaign to highlight concerns about education, employment and opportunities, while the opposition accuses the Center of failing to adequately address the challenges facing India's youth.