Karnataka Cabinet Okays Bill To Reserve Jobs For Locals In Private Sector

Bengaluru: The Karnataka Cabinet has approved a draft Bill making it compulsory for the industries, factories and other establishments in the Congress-ruled state to appoint local candidates in 50% of management positions and 75% in non-management positions, claimed media reports.

The bill also makes 100% reservation for locals in Group C and Group D government jobs.

According to reports, the bill also states that for every enterprise that has more than 100 employees, there will be a government official in the recruitment board or committee.

The Karnataka State Government Employment of Local Candidates in Industries Bill, 2024, which has already drawn widespread criticism from the industry players, was cleared in a cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on July 15. It will be presented during the current legislative session.

Who is a local according to the bill?
The bill defines someone as a local, who was either born in Karnataka or has been a domicile since 15 years or more. Moreover, the person should speak, read and write Kannada in a legible manner, the bill states. The candidates should have a secondary school certificate with Kannada as a language. If case of lack of certification, they must pass a Kannada proficiency test as specified by the nodal agency. When there is a lack of qualified local candidates, the hiring establishments must collaborate with government agencies and train the candidates within three years.

Exemptions and Penalties
The Bill also cites exemptions in case there aren’t enough local candidates. In such cases, the hiring establishment may apply to the government for relaxation from the Act’s provisions. The government, after conducting a proper inquiry, may issue appropriate orders. The government’s order shall be final. But, the percentage of local candidates should not fall below 25% for management positions and 50% for non-management categories. Any failure to comply to the reservation mandate may lead penalties ranging from Rs 10,000 to Rs 25,000. Further violations can result in additional penalties of Rs 100 per day until it is complied with.

We are a pro-Kannada government: Karnataka CM
“The Cabinet meeting held yesterday approved a bill to make recruitment of 100 per cent Kannadigas mandatory for ‘C and D’ grade posts in all private industries in the state,” Siddaramaiah wrote on X. He further emphasised his government’s commitment to the welfare of Kannadigas, as he wrote, “We are a Pro-Kannada government. Our priority is to look after the welfare of the Kannadigas.”

Industry reacts
The Bill has been criticized for being authoritative by various industry leaders. Mohandas Pai, the Chairman of Manipal Global Education Services said that the Bill is ‘fascist’. “This bill should be junked. It is discriminatory, regressive and against the constitution @Jairam_Ramesh is govt to certify who we are? This is a fascist bill as in Animal Farm, unbelievable that @INCIndia can come up with a bill like this- a govt officer will sit on recruitment committees of the private sector? People have to take a language test?” Pai wrote on ‘X’.

Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, the Executive Chairperson of Biocon Limited said that the state should not let this Bill affect its leading position in the domain of technology and there should be exemptions for highly skilled recruitment. “As a tech hub, we need skilled talent and whilst the aim is to provide jobs for locals we must not affect our leading position in technology by this move. There must be caveats that exempt highly skilled recruitment from this policy,” he posted on ‘X’.

Past recommendations
In the past, the Sarojini Mahishi Committee report had stated that in large, medium and small-scale industrial units with more than 50 workers, 65% and 80% of the jobs in A and B categories respectively would be reserved for Kannadigas, and 100% in C and D categories would be reserved for Kannadigas. But no policies were formulated in this regard.