Times View

Karnataka plans 100% quota for locals in private blue-collar jobs

BENGALURU: The Karnataka government plans to provide Kannadigas 100% reservation in mainly blue-collar jobs in private sector industries across the state. The state labour department has released the draft amendments to the Karnataka Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Rules of 1961to this end.The 100% horizontal reservation for Kannadigas is meant for all private industries -except those in the infotech and biotech sector -that secure concessions under the industrial policy of Karnataka.If industries do not follow these new guidelines, the government will cancel all concessions given to them. The amendments will be implemented once the law department gives its approval the second time. Karnataka labour minister Santosh Lad told TOI: “The amendment will give us the means to ensure that all private sector industries open their doors to us, to identify how many Kannadigas work in each company and rectify any discrepancies.“The minister said the labour department may adopt a lenient approach if the companies employed Kannadigas to 70% of all whiteand bluecollar jobs or 100% of blue-collar jobs alone. “We're not saying they have to pick a Kannadiga if there is none for the job. But we're insisting that private industries employ Kannadigas as the first option,“ he said.The department also provided 5% reservation for a disabled person who is also a Kannadiga. The IT-BT (information technology-biotechnology) vertical has been exempted as they are not covered under the Karnataka Industrial Employ ment (Standing Orders) Rules of 1961 for a period of five years from 2014.Sources in the labour department said the government did not want to hamper the “bread and butter“ of the state GDP with the reservation policy . “We did not want to invite a problem with the powerful IT-BT lobby at this point in time. Let's first implement this reservation and then take on the IT-BT vertical later,“ a department official said.The labour department has got the concurrence of Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah for the amendment, and the law department will vet the amendment once again before implementing it.While the state government's intentions to provide employment opportunities for the Kannadiga population is a welcome move, 100% reservation could lead to a compromise on choosing the best candidates available just to comply with the rule. The private sector has thrived on meritocracy, irrespective of the linguistic background or domicile of the person. This may also result in loss of revenue if private industries keep looking for locals and ignore readily available labour from other states.