Unemployment 'biggest curse' under Modi govt: Kharge

New Delhi: Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Wednesday accused the Modi government of using "dubious employment data for PR", and said no amount of "whitewashing" can change the truth that lakhs of job aspirants have to daily struggle on the road with very few jobs.

Kharge shared a media report on X which claimed that for 1,257 vacancies for the post of woman constables and woman constable drivers, the Mumbai Police received 1.11 lakh applications from across the state.

"Unemployment has been the biggest curse under Modi government," Kharge said.

"The Modi government is using dubious employment data which is grossly inflated by counting 'unpaid labour' and 'one-hour work per week', as a ridiculous PR exercise!" he said in his post on X.

In Maharashtra, where 1.11 lakh women applied for a mere 1,257 Mumbai Police constable posts, many of them forced to spend the night on the pavement with toddlers, is a grim reminder of the grave unemployment situation, he said.

"A suicide helpline number launched on July 15 by the Diamond Workers Union Gujarat has received more than 1,600 distress calls from those who either lost their jobs or were struggling with reduced wages that crippled their household finances," Kharge said.

Surat's famed diamond industry is facing recession, with firms announcing a "10-day vacation" for their 50,000 employees, he said.

"Last month, we witnessed how over 25,000 job seekers had turned up for 2,216 vacancies for the post of loaders at Mumbai airport. Similar stampede-like scenes were witnessed in Gujarat's Bharuch, where 1,800 people turned up for 10 openings at a private company," he said.

"No amount of whitewashing by the Modi government can change the truth that lakhs of job aspirants have to daily struggle on the road with very few jobs!" the Congress chief said.

The BJP's "jumla" of 2 crore jobs per year signifies shameless betrayal to every Indian, Kharge said.