Kannad activists have taken their demand for private-sector job reservations to Bengaluru’s IT companies, reigniting a nearly four-decade-old debate over local employment that successive Karnataka governments have struggled to resolve.
The campaign continued despite Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar ‘s appeal to Kannada organisations against directly approaching IT-BT companies. KRV has stepped up its demand for the government to fulfil its promise of reserving jobs for local candidates. “Four years have passed, yet this remains unfulfilled.
As activists survey firms to scrutinise hiring practices and the representation of Kannadigas, the state government faces renewed pressure to act on the long-pending demand, even as its proposed 2024 jobs quota Bill remains on hold. On November 4, activists visited Google’s office at Ananta, Rio Business Park, in Mahadevapura and submitted their recommendations as part of the exercise. Earlier, on October 25, the chief minister had said the government would take appropriate action if private institutions were found to be deliberately sidelining Kannadigas. The demand for a greater share of jobs for Kannadigas dates back to 1983, when the then Karnataka chief minister Ramakrishna Hegde appointed former parliamentarian Sarojini Mahishi to head a committee examining employment opportunities for Kannadigas in government establishments, public sector undertakings (PSUs), private companies and multinational corporations. The committee submitted an interim report in June 1984 and its final report in December 1986, making 58 recommendations. The Karnataka government accepted 45 of them, according to an Indian Express report. Among its key recommendations was 100% reservation for Kannadigas in all state government establishments and PSUs. It also proposed 100% reservation in Group C and D jobs in central government departments and PSUs operating in Karnataka, along with minimum reservations of 80% in Group B and 65% in Group A positions in these establishments. In a November 6 statement addressed to Shivakumar on X, Gowda referred to the Congress’s 2023 election manifesto, which had promised that 80% of job opportunities across all levels in the public and private sectors would be reserved for locals.
In a post on X, he said the government had taken complaints about local candidates being overlooked seriously and that their rights, dignity and opportunities would not be compromised. There can be no higher priority than this, as it concerns the future of the children of Karnataka,” Gowda said, urging the deputy chief minister to take the proposal to the Cabinet immediately.
