Stop Promoting Corporate Traps – Invest in Public Skill Training

Strong Criticism of the Public Notice Dated 29th April 2025 Issued by the Office of the Deputy Commissioner, Lamka.

The recent public notice issued by the Deputy Commissioner of Lamka promoting a skill training and employment programme in association with HCL TechBee, a private company, raises serious concerns about the direction and responsibility of public office in addressing youth employment and vocational development.

1. A Corporate Trap in the Name of Public Welfare

This so-called opportunity, masked under the guise of a training and employment programme, is essentially a private enterprise marketing strategy. The training, partially subsidised with Rs. 50,000 by the Government of Manipur, still demands the remaining fee from students—pushing them toward loan schemes. This is not empowerment; it's a cleverly disguised economic trap targeting fresh Class XII graduates during a critical transition period in their lives.

2. Misplaced Priorities of the District Administration

It is both shocking and disappointing that the Deputy Commissioner, a public servant entrusted with the welfare of the people, is actively promoting this private corporate agenda. Instead of tapping into central schemes such as the Skill India Mission, Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY), or initiatives under the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, which are meant to provide free skill training, the DC has opted to backdoor private interests with public subsidies.

3. Neglect of Existing Infrastructure: The Case of the Defunct ITI

The only Government Industrial Training Institute (ITI) in Lamka lies neglected. Why is it non-functional? Why has the DC turned a blind eye to revamping or utilising this crucial public institution that could have provided genuine, long-term, job-oriented technical education at no cost? This silence and inaction are alarming.

4. Absence of IT & Electronics Centres in the District

There is currently no fully-equipped IT and Electronics Training Centre in Lamka. Instead of laying a foundation for a robust local technical ecosystem, the administration is relying on external private companies with no commitment to long-term job security or community development.

5. Exploiting the Aspirations of Youth

At a time when Class XII graduates are desperate for a way forward, the DC's office should be thinking of sustainable and secure solutions—ones that can build the lives of our youth, not saddle them with debts and leave them at the mercy of uncertain private employment. There is no job security in these private roles. Employees can be laid off at any moment with no legal recourse.

6. Call for Long-Term Vision and Accountability

The role of the Deputy Commissioner is not to act as a promotional agent for private companies. It is to build, regulate, and channel public resources towards sustainable development. The DC must be held accountable for not initiating reforms in the ITI, for ignoring the establishment of proper IT and vocational training centres, and for failing to chart a long-term roadmap for the youth of Lamka.

The government must withdraw from this ill-planned association and redirect its efforts towards public, free, and sustainable training initiatives. Our children deserve more than short-term, unstable jobs. They deserve a future built on reliable public infrastructure and long-term vocational planning.

~ Editor, KHALVONTAWI ONLINE

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