The decision comes amid the Opposition's frequent criticism that the government has failed to create enough jobs even as unemployment remains a sore point in the economy | Photo: ANI

With less than two years left for the next general elections, the Narendra Modi government has sprung into action to address one of the most talked-about problems in the country: Unemployment. The prime minister on Tuesday directed all central government ministries and departments to identify vacancies and recruit one million in one and a half years.

The decision comes amid the Opposition’s frequent criticism that the government has failed to create enough jobs even as unemployment remains a sore point in the economy, especially in the wake of Covid-19.

A large number of vacant posts in different government departments have often been flagged.

PM Narendra Modi reviewed the status of human resources in all departments and ministries and instructed that recruitment of 10 lakh people be done by the government in mission mode in the next 1.5 years,” the prime minister’s office tweeted on Tuesday.

At a media briefing later in the day, Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Thakur said that all central government departments and ministries had been told to identify vacancies at the earliest and employ people on a priority basis