Surajpur (Chhattisgarh): Chhattisgarh Home Minister Tamradhwaj Sahu on Sunday courted controversy as he refused to accept that the issue of unemployment existed in the state, and insisted that people were migrating out of "habit".
Sahu made the remarks while he was in Surajpur district on a one-day visit.
Recently, a bus which was transporting over 30 minor labourers to Tamil Nadu, was stopped by villagers in the state's Chandni-Biharpur area.
On being questioned by reporters over the incident, Sahu refused to accept that there was a shortage of jobs in the state.
"Some people are habituated of going out (migrating). It is not as if there are no jobs here," the home minister said.
Further, Sahu went on to claim that Chhattisgarh had provided the most jobs during the coronavirus pandemic.
"During the coronavirus pandemic, Chhattisgarh provided the most jobs in India. There is no shortage of jobs here. However, some people leave the state out of habit," he added.
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Earlier last month, the Chhattisgarh government had cited the data released by Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE) and said that the state's unemployment rate of 2 per cent in September was much below the national rate of 6.7 per cent.
"The visionary decisions taken by the state government under the leadership of Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel has added momentum to agricultural and industrial activities in the state thereby enhancing employment opportunities," the statement claimed.
