Gandhinagar, March 18 : The Gujarat government has provided employment opportunities to over 10,835 educated and semi-educated youths in the private sector across Mehsana and Gandhinagar districts over the past year.

State Labour and Employment Minister Balvantsinh Rajput said this in response to a question in the Assembly.

Providing further details, Minister Rajput stated that in Mehsana district, 7,525 educated and 102 semi-educated individuals secured jobs, while in Sabarkantha district, 3,208 educated youths were employed.

The state government's 'Anubandham Portal' has played a crucial role in this initiative, enabling job seekers to apply for jobs from home and helping employers find suitable manpower.

Additionally, regular job fairs and mega job fairs are conducted at the district and taluka levels through employment offices.

The minister also emphasised the government's commitment to facilitating recruitment for young aspirants looking to join the armed forces.

"Special military recruitment fairs are organised, providing necessary arrangements such as accommodation, food, and transport for participating candidates. The government has allocated up to Rs 9 lakh per recruitment fair to support this initiative. To further aid tribal youth, special employment fairs are organised in remote locations such as Khedbrahma, Poshina, Dharampur, and Chhota Udepur, ensuring they do not have to travel long distances to district headquarters for job opportunities," he said.

According to the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) 2023-24 conducted by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, Gujarat recorded the second-lowest unemployment rate in the country, following Madhya Pradesh. In the 15-29 age group, the state's unemployment rate for the July-September 2023 quarter was 7.1 per cent, significantly lower than the national average of 17.3 per cent.

For individuals aged 15 and above, Gujarat's unemployment rate stood at 3.1 per cent during the same period, compared to the national average of 6.6 per cent. However, urban areas in Gujarat have experienced fluctuations in unemployment rates. The unemployment rate for individuals aged 15 and above in urban Gujarat was 2.8 per cent in 2021-22, which surged to 8.7 per cent in 2022-23.

Subsequently, it declined to 2.3 per cent in 2023-24, highlighting the importance of sustained measures to stabilise the labour market and mitigate future economic disruptions.

/IANS