Eighteen-year-old Ranjeet is the face of today's youth in rural Jharkhand. He is aware,educated completed matriculation from Jharkhand board and got a diploma from a private Industrial Training Institute in 2007 and concerned about his future. Last year,Ranjeet enrolled himself at the state government-run Employment Exchange. He has been scanning newspapers for job advertisements,filling up forms and mailing his CVs,but despite having the Scheduled Tribe (ST) status in his favour,he has not received a single call till date. Ranjeet,whose name figured in the electoral list for the first time this year,says he is not an odd case. There are several other unemployed Adivasi youth from his Sarangi village,between the age group of 18 to 25,who are unable to find jobs despite having the right qualification. Sarangi,a village of 550 voters that will go to polls on April 16,is a part of Khunti Lok Sabha constituency. For the past five years,Khunti (ST Reserve) has been represented the Congress's Sushila Kerketta. This time,local MLA form BJP Neelkanth Singh Munda is busy mobilising votes for the party's Lok Sabha candidate Karia Munda,while the Congress had dropped Kerketta and fielded its MLA from neighbouring Simdega Assembly constituency,Neil Tirkey. For the young villagers in Satrangi and adjoining areas,where there is no industry,land is rocky and farming is dependent on monsoon rains in the absence of irrigation facilities,jobs is their primary concern. During the summer and winter,vast tracts of land in the region remain barren and tribals migrate to far and wide places in search of livelihood. But Ranjeet cannot even migrate. "As my parents are old and I have to look after them," he says. The UPA's flagship plan National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) promising 100-day job every year,has brought some relief to villagers,but for educated youths like Ranjeet,it's not an option. "Earth cutting job offered under the NREGA is looked down upon by the creamy section of the Adivasis," says Ranjeet. "My parents were hopeful that I would get a job after I completed my two-year ITI course,but now they have begun to worry. Many of my friends have migrated to distant areas to work as daily-wage labourers and private security guards," he adds. Ranjeet's mother Rumni Devi (55) is a house wife and father Jitu Oraon (62) is a retired Class-IV employee of Ranchi-based PSU,Heavy Engineering Corporation (HEC). Over 1.5 lakh of the Khunti's 7.5-lakh electorate is registered as unemployed matriculates,a problem which,if not tackled,may further escalate Naxalism in the state. Though Ranjeet appears disappointed and frustrated,he says he will not let his newly gained right to franchise go a waste. "I will definitely vote. But I will vote for a candidate who is honest."
