Team Goemkarponn
BENAULIM: Former Goa Tourism Minister and former Benaulim and Nuvem MLA Francisco Xavier Pacheco, popularly known as Mickky Pacheco, has questioned the BJP government’s reported assurance of government employment to youngsters completing one year of apprenticeship under the Chief Minister’s Apprenticeship Scheme.
In a press statement dated November 9, Pacheco referred to announcements reportedly made in churches across Nuvem constituency on November 8, informing youngsters who had completed one year of apprenticeship to submit their names at the local MLA’s office, with assurances of absorption into government service.
Questioning the announcement, Pacheco asked why the government was making such assurances to fresh apprentices while hundreds of Goan youngsters working on contractual and temporary appointments in various government departments for the past 10 to 15 years continued to await employment security.
He clarified that he was not opposed to providing employment opportunities to fresh Goan youth but maintained that the government must also address the grievances of existing contractual employees who had dedicated several years to public service.
Highlighting the situation in the Health Department, Pacheco said several contractual employees had worked in government hospitals, health centres and other establishments for over a decade, despite repeatedly submitting representations seeking regularisation of their services.
He pointed out that many of these employees had spent their most productive working years in government service, putting alternative career opportunities on hold, and were now facing uncertainty over their professional and financial futures.
“If the government is prepared to provide a pathway towards absorption into government employment to those completing one year of apprenticeship, what consideration has it given to contractual employees who have already rendered 10 to 15 years of actual service?” he questioned.
Pacheco also sought clarification on whether the reported assurance made in Nuvem had the backing of a Cabinet decision, government notification or an officially approved recruitment policy. He stressed that completion of apprenticeship training should not be projected as an automatic guarantee of government employment unless supported by a formal government order.
He further demanded transparency regarding sanctioned vacancies, eligibility criteria, selection procedures, reservation provisions and the legal framework governing any proposed absorption of apprentices.
Questioning the use of individual MLA offices to collect names for government employment, Pacheco said recruitment must follow a uniform and transparent process and should not create an impression that access to government jobs depended on political recommendations.
With the next Assembly elections approaching, he also questioned whether similar assurances would be made in other constituencies and urged the Chief Minister to clarify whether the reported initiative was part of an approved statewide employment policy or a constituency-level announcement.
Pacheco called upon the government to conduct a comprehensive department-wise assessment of contractual employees, particularly those who had completed more than 10 years of service, and formulate a fair and legally sustainable policy to address their grievances, including regularisation wherever permissible under applicable rules and judicial directions.
He demanded an immediate public clarification from the Chief Minister on whether one year of apprenticeship would actually lead to absorption into government service and sought a time-bound resolution of the concerns of long-serving contractual employees.
Emphasising that both fresh apprentices and existing contractual workers deserved equal treatment, Pacheco said the future of Goan youth could not be managed through announcements and assurances alone.
