Lalru, Dera Bassi: Unemployment, poor quality of education major concerns

Kulwinder Singh, who stays in a nearby village and is a property dealer, said, “In 1992 there were at least 50 industries which were setup here and we were hoping this place to have numerous opportunities for the youth. Unfortunately as soon as the government changed all the industries vanished. Unemployment has affected the area badly,” he added. Paramjit Singh, who runs a karyana shop opposite to a open area where construction work of a sewage plant has been stopped due to protests of residents of the area. Singh said, “The construction work of this plant started one month back. The residents opposed the construction work as the area will start stinking. The work was stopped today. The government started this work two months prior to elections, he added.

Sukwinder Singh, who runs an electric gadget repair shop here, said, “Two years ago politician N K Sharma had laid foundation stone of building a dharamshala here. Now they are making a sewerage treatment plant.” On the few jobs offered by the remaining 8-10 industries Singh said, “Only a few industries are left where the migrant population works. Very few Punjabis are working at these factories.”

Daughter of a labourer, Pradeep Kaur after spending Rs 2.5 lakh on a course has been unable to get a job. She said, “I completed my schooling from the government school here. As there are no good government colleges here I decided to pursue a course of working as a laboratory assistant for which I traveled to Chandigarh everyday. However, I am sitting unemployed at home.” Her brother Gurpreet Singh has also taken admission in a college in Derabassi owing to lack of good educational institutes in the region.

Amit Kumar, another property dealer said, “By constructing a few tall buildings and maintaining roads we cant say there is development. Its development only when the people of a particular constituency are getting jobs. The youngsters on the area are jobless. Other than being jobless there is corruption.”