December 5, 2025
Rajya Sabha MP Md Nadimul Haque’s Zero Hour mention on the Finance Minister’s misleading figures on companies in Bengal and the need for improving youth skilling schemes
Sir, blue collar workers are people who work in manufacturing, construction, maintenance sectors and more. India’s economic ambitions rest on a labour force of more than 50 crore people, most of whom work in blue collar and low wage occupations. For all the Government’s big talk about skill development among youth, only 4 per cent of youth have received formal vocational or
technical training. Another 17 per cent have received informal training. This means, four out of five young entrants are not skilled to work in industry. Sir, let me expose the Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana. It was started in 2015. This Flagship scheme has trained just 1.6 crore people, barely 3 per cent in the last 10 years of India’s workforce. Let me expose one more scheme today, Sir. The National Apprenticeship Promotion Scheme was launched nine years ago with a target of 46 lakhs. It has failed well below the target. This Modi Government only talks about skilling but when it comes to target met, the achievements are poor. I have given you two examples. While on the subject of blue collar workers, I must point out that the hon. Finance Minister completely * the House
yesterday on figures in companies where blue and white collar workers are employed. She said, ‘7,000 companies shifted out of Bengal in 14 years’. Sir, what she didn’t say here is that between 2011 and 2025, over one lakh companies were registered in Bengal, an increase of 83 per cent. Yes, Sir, 7,500 companies were added every year in Bengal. In the last five years, 40,000 companies were incorporated and only 1,700 were shifted out. A country of this size cannot grow when the Government is dishonest about its figures. A country of this size cannot rely on the strength of an unskilled workforce.
