Hyderabad: Youth are being denied their due share of excise funds in TS. The TS government is earning a whopping Rs 13,000 crore per year from sale of liquor but has been shying away from giving two per cent of this amount as the share of the youth for their overall development.
As per norms, two per cent of excise funds have to be spent on the youth for self-employment schemes, career counselling, sports, incentives etc. While the CM's Relief Fund has been receiving its due share of five per cent every year, the youth is being neglected.
The government allotted a mere Rs 16 crore in the Budget this year for youth while it should be nearly Rs 250 crore. Of this, about Rs 12 crore is spent on salaries for staff leaving just Rs 4 crore for youth.Youth comprise about 1.50 crore of the 3.51 crore population in Telangana state, and unemployment remains a major concern.
Interestingly, both the excise and youth portfolios are held by one minister, T. Padma Rao Goud. This gives scope of administrative convenience to ensure transfer of two per cent excise funds to youth easily. However, this has not been the case for the last two years.
“We have written to the government earlier to ensure two per cent share in excise earnings for youth but the issue is pending. I will pursue the case with CM and try to get additional funds this year,” Mr Goud said.
While there is an urgent need to take up various activities for the welfare and overall development of youth, the state government has failed to come out even with a ‘youth policy’ in the last two years, unlike other states in the country. Only Rs 4 crore has been allotted in the Budget this year for youth to form self-help groups, promotion of livelihood and entrepreneurial projects and career counselling.
Worse still is that just Rs 14 lakh has been allotted for conducting youth welfare programmes and activities for the entire year. Just Rs 3 crore has been sanctioned for youth SHGs to establish self employment units. For the all-important career counselling to guide youth on career opportunities, a mere Rs 10 lakh has been allotted for the entire year.
