No job for you if you don't know Kannada

No job for you if you don't know Kannada

Karnataka Development Authority wants to make Kannada a must for job seekers and employees in the state

Rashmi Belur. Bangalore

All companies in Karnataka, including private firms set up by entrepreneurs from other states, will have to make knowing Kannada a must eligibility criteria for job seekers if a proposal mooted by the Kannada Development Authority (KDA) works out. There's more. The rule will also apply to employees who are already on the rolls of such companies.
"We plan to insist that people coming to the state to set up business should recruit only those who are able to speak and understand Kannada," Mukhyamantri Chandru, chairman of the Kannada Development Authority, told DNA.
"After the (state legislature) sessions come to a close, I will discuss the issue with chief minister BS Yedyurappa as this has to be framed as a rule at the government level," he added.
Chandru said the rule will not just apply for new companies or those planning to set up business in Karnataka, but for all, including the existing ones.
KDA's plan, said Chandru, involves amending the memoranda of understanding (MoUs) between the outstation entrepreneurs and the state government before setting up business in the state so that relevant clauses to this effect could be included.
"The KDA will also insist on the state government's right to cancel the permits of companies which do not adhere to this rule," said Chandru.
He said the state government had accepted the Sarojini Mahishi Report, which recommended that even private firms should recruit Kannadigas for Grade C and D jobs. "But while signing the agreements with these companies, nobody, including former governments in Karnataka, had considered the recommendations," he said, pointing out that in Karnataka, Kannadigas themselves were being treated as minorities.
"Those from other states coming into Karnataka must realise that without learning Kannada, it would be difficult for them to survive in this state," Chandru said.
He blamed former Karnataka governments for not giving priority to Kannada and Kannadigas in the job sector. He said this had ultimately led to problems like the implementation of the state's language policy in the schools.