Lucknow, Jan 25 (PTI) Braving the chilly weather, men from across Uttar Pradesh are reaching the state capital to participate in a week-long recruitment camp in the hope of securing a well-paying job as a skilled labour in Israel.
The recruitment-cum-selection camp is being held at the Industrial Training Institute (ITI) in Aliganj area of the state capital.
On Thursday morning, close to a thousand men stood in two queues outside the gate of ITI waiting for their turn to get inside for a skill test.
Roop Kumar, 36, from Moradabad, is waiting for his turn holding a file of documents in his hands.
“I work as a mason. I heard about the job opportunity and applied,” he said.
Asked whether he knows anything about Israel where he will have to go for work, Kumar said, “I have never travelled to Delhi to date, how will I know about Israel? I just know that I will be paid well for working there and the government will take care of me.” Standing behind him is 25-year-old Dileep from Bareilly. A science graduate, he hopes to get selected as a bar bender.
“I have been preparing for government exams for the last three years. I come from a poor family and cannot afford to study further. The possibility of getting a job here is also negligible so I have applied for a job here,” he said.
Prabhakar Singh, 36, a carpenter from Gorakhpur, said, “I applied for the job online over a month ago and was called here. They asked me to build a shuttering structure from plywood and checked my documents. I hope that I will be selected for the job.” Singh is aware of the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict but the dangers of the war fell short before his need to earn a living for his family.
“I am the oldest in my family and the only earning member. I think it will be better if I die there earning for my family than staying here and not being able to do anything,” he said.
The employment drive was launched on January 23 in the presence of Labour and Employment Minister of State Anil Rajbhar and Minister of State for Vocational Education Kapil Dev Agarwal.
The drive is being organised by the Union Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship and state Labour Department in tandem with agencies working for Israel.
“The process of employing the construction workers in Israel is being taken care of by NSDC International, an agency working under the Union Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship from India and Population, Immigration and Border Authority (PIBA), Israel,” said director, training and employment, Kunal Silku.
“The Israeli team will test around 5,000 candidates for jobs such as bar bender, mason, tiler and shuttering carpenter. Those selected can earn a salary of up to Rs 1.37 lakh per month. Apart from the salary, they will be provided with medical insurance, food and accommodation,” Silku added.
The promised salary is the biggest draw for the men waiting for their turn outside the ITI.
“I have been doing the work of a tiler for the last 15 years but I hardly manage to earn Rs 15,000 to 20,000 a month. I have three children and elderly parents to take care of. The work in Israel will pay me enough to take care of my family,” said 39-year-old Surendra Sahu from Gorakhpur.
According to the state officials, the preliminary selection was done based on information provided by the willing candidates online.
“The application for the job was received from across the state. The candidates whose applications were confirmed have been called to this recruitment and selection drive to test their skills and final selection,” Silku said.
The men are called in groups of five for their skill test. While their documents are checked, they are asked to perform the job they have applied for to test their skills. The carpenters build shuttering, the tilers are made to fix tile on a wall and bar benders make columns. While they perform the task, they are keenly observed by people from the agency. Once called inside, it takes about 25 minutes for the skill test.
As per the information provided by the state Labour Department, of the total workers selected by PIBA, testing of the skills of 629 workers from Agra, Kanpur and Lucknow was done on Tuesday.
As many as 585 workers from Azamgarh and Banda divisions were tested the next day while 563 workers from Bareilly, Jhansi, Noida, Moradabad and Devipatan divisions were tested on Thursday.
Further, 656 workers from Varanasi, Mirzapur, Meerut and Ghaziabad; 877 workers from Gorakhpur division; 739 workers from Ayodhya and Saharanpur divisions and 603 workers from Aligarh, Basti and Prayagraj divisions have been called for their skill test by January 30. PTI CDN KSS NB NB
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