Bengaluru: Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said his cabinet has approved a bill mandating 100 per cent reservation for Kannadigas in private firms for Group C and Group D posts, on Tuesday. He said the nod came from a Cabinet meeting held on Monday.
"The Cabinet meeting held yesterday approved a bill to make recruitment of 100 per cent Kannadigas mandatory for 'C and D' grade posts in all private industries in the state," PTI quoted Siddaramaiah as saying in a post on X. "We are a pro-Kannada government. Our priority is to look after the welfare of the Kannadigas," it added.
Quantum Of Reservation
According to sources in the law department, the 'Karnataka State Employment of Local Candidates in the Industries, Factories and Other Establishments Bill, 2024' will be tabled on Thursday in the Assembly.
"Any industry, factory or other establishments shall appoint fifty percent of local candidates in management categories and seventy percent in non-management categories," the bill said on the appointment of 'Local Candidates'.
Kannada Language Test
If the candidates do not possess secondary school certificate with Kannada as a language, they must pass a Kannada proficiency test as specified by the 'Nodal Agency'. If the qualified local candidates are not available, the establishments within three years with active collaboration of government or its agencies should take steps to train them, the Bill said.
Relaxations Available
If sufficient number of local candidates are not available, then an establishment may apply for relaxation from the provisions of this Act to the government. "Such orders passed by the Government shall be final: Provided that, the relaxation provided under this section shall not be less than twenty five percent for management category and fifty percent for non-management categories," the bill yet-to-be tabled read.
Compliance Mechanism
Every industry or factory or other establishment should inform the nodal agency about the compliance of the provisions of this Act in such form, within such period as may be prescribed, it said. The role of the nodal agency will be to verify the reports furnished by an employer or occupier or manager of an establishment and submit a report to the government indicating the implementation of the provisions of this Act.
The nodal agency will have powers to call for any records information or documents in the possession of an employer or occupier or manager of an establishment for the purpose of verifying the report. The government may appoint an officer not below the rank Assistant Labour Commissioner as the authorised officer for the purposes of compliance of the provisions of the Act.
Any employer or occupier or manager of an establishment, who contravenes the provisions of this Act, should be liable for a penalty between Rs 10,000 to Rs 25,000. "If the contraveantion continues after penalty has been imposed, then, with further penalty which may extend to one hundred rupees for each day till the time contravention so continues," the proposed bill says.
'Parochial' And 'Retrograde'
CPI(M) Rajya Sabha MP John Brittas termed it as being 'parochial' and 'retrograde'. "This is retrograde and reactionary…a city is developed in India not by those who are born n domicile there. This is another form of fundamentalism at play.. and such parochialism will never help anyone.(sic)," he wrote in a post on X, tagging Congress chief Rahul Gandhi, Siddaramaiah and the latter's deputy and KPCC chief DK Shivakumar. (with PTI inputs)
