Karnataka govt launches scheme offering unemployment stipend to grads and diploma holders
Shivamogga (PTI): The Karnataka government on Friday launched the Congress party's fifth 'guarantee' offering unemployment monthly stipend of Rs 3,000 to graduates and Rs 1,500 to diploma holders.
Chief Minister Siddaramaiah handed over cheques to six beneficiaries to symbolically kickstart the "Yuva Nidhi" scheme, meant for the graduates and diploma holders who passed in the academic year 2022-23 and remained jobless even after 180 days of completion of their education.
The stipend will be given only for two years and it will end soon after the beneficiary gets a job. Those who have enrolled for higher education and continuing studies are not eligible under the scheme.
The state government has earmarked Rs 250 crore for the scheme in the current financial year. It expects that next year, it will cost Rs 1,200 crore to the state exchequer and from 2026 onwards Rs 1,500 crore annually.
The Congress government has already launched four guarantees -- Shakti', providing free rides to Karnataka women in non-luxury government buses, Anna Bhagya' offering 10 kg rice to BPL families, Gruha Jyoti' giving free electricity up to 200 units to household users, and Gruha Lakshmi' giving Rs 2,000 a month to women heads of families having APL/BPL ration cards.
"We will impart skill development training to the beneficiaries. The duration of this scheme is for two years. If they get a job whether private or government, the benefit will immediately stop. The skill development department will decide which training to be given," Siddaramaiah told reporters here.
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Sujit Nair raises concerns over speculation of DMK-AIADMK understanding to block TVK
Chennai: Journalist and political commentator Sujit Nair has expressed concern over speculation that the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam could explore a post-poll understanding to prevent Vijay-led Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam from forming the government in Tamil Nadu.
In a social media post, Sujit Nair said the election verdict in Tamil Nadu reflected a clear public demand for political change and argued that the mandate should be respected irrespective of political preferences.
Referring to reports and political discussions surrounding a possible understanding between the DMK and AIADMK, he said he hoped such developments remained only speculative conversations and did not turn into reality.
Nair stated that if such an alliance were to take shape, it would raise serious questions about ideological politics in the country. He said TVK had emerged through a democratic electoral process and that the legitimacy to govern in a parliamentary democracy comes from the people’s verdict.
According to him, attempts to prevent an electoral winner from forming the government through unexpected political arrangements may be constitutionally valid, but many people could view them as politically opportunistic.
He further said that such a move could particularly affect the political image of the DMK, which has historically projected itself around ideology, social justice and opposition politics. Nair said that in ideological terms, the DMK appeared closer to TVK than to the AIADMK, and joining hands with its long-time political rival only to remain in power could weaken its broader political narrative.
He added that the same questions would apply to the AIADMK as well, as the party had spent decades positioning itself against the DMK and such an arrangement could create discomfort among its cadre and supporters.
Drawing a comparison with Maharashtra politics in 2019, Nair said he had expressed similar views when the Shiv Sena formed an alliance with the Indian National Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party after the Assembly elections.
He said post-poll alliances between long-standing political rivals often create a public perception that ideology and electoral mandates become secondary when political power equations come into play.
Nair also said such developments increase public cynicism towards politics and reinforce the belief among voters that ideology is often sidelined after elections.
He maintained that the Tamil Nadu verdict was emphatic and said respecting both the spirit and substance of the mandate was important for the credibility of democratic politics.
