Bhubaneswar: The Opposition Biju Janata Dal (BJD) Sunday accused the Mohan Charan Majhi-led BJP government of failing to address the state’s job crisis and alleged that several of its employment claims were based on recruitment processes initiated during the previous BJD regime.
Addressing a press conference at Sankha Bhawan, BJD spokesperson and media coordinator Lenin Mohanty questioned the government’s claim of providing 45,000 government jobs since June 2024.
He alleged that a substantial portion of these recruitments had originated from notifications issued between 2020 and 2023, when the BJD was in power.
The BJP had promised 1.5 lakh government jobs in five years in its election manifesto, Mohanty said, alleging that the current pace of recruitment was far behind the target.
He said around 94,485 government posts across 41 departments remained vacant as of early 2026.
Against this backdrop, merely removing the six-attempt limit for the Odisha Civil Services examination could not resolve the unemployment problem.
The government should instead ensure a transparent, impartial and time-bound recruitment process to fill vacant posts, he said.
The BJD also questioned the government’s claims of creating employment through industrial investments.
Mohanty referred to the announcement of three lakh employment opportunities over the next two to three years and 20 lakh opportunities eventually, saying there was no clear account of how many projects had actually been grounded or how many jobs had been created.
Despite investment proposals worth Rs 21 lakh crore, the government had not provided a clear picture of employment generated on the ground, he alleged.
Continued migration of workers from several districts, he said, indicated that adequate livelihood o
pportunities were still unavailable within the state.
Mohanty also highlighted staff shortages in the education sector. While the government claimed to have recruited more than 26,000 teachers and employees, several Odisha Adarsha Vidyalayas continued to face vacancies.
He claimed that nearly 35 per cent of teacher posts were vacant in some schools, while hundreds of schools were functioning without headmasters.
The BJD further criticised the government’s reliance on contractual appointments, alleging that the BJP had opposed the system while in Opposition but was now depending on it.
Mohanty said the government’s vision of a ‘prosperous Odisha’ by 2036 would remain a slogan unless it translated into sustained employment generation.
He accused the BJP government of relying on “big claims and political rhetoric” instead of fulfilling its job promises and sought greater transparency on recruitment and employment figures.
