‘Must not affect...’: Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw on Karnataka reservation for locals in pvt firms

Biocon founder Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw has reacted to the new bill in Karnataka that mandates reservation for locals in private firms. Mazumdar-Shaw said that while it is an understandable move for job creation, it should not impact Karnataka’s position as the leader in technology. She also stressed on the importance of skilled talent in the technology space. 

Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, while tagging Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah, Deputy CM DK Shivakumar, and Minister for Electronics, and IT Priyank Kharge, said on a social media post: “As a tech hub we need skilled talent and whilst the aim is to provide jobs for locals we must not affect our leading position in technology by this move. There must be caveats that exempt highly skilled recruitment from this policy.”

WHAT IS THE NEW KARNATAKA BILL?

The Karnataka Cabinet has approved a new legislation that mandates 50 per cent of management positions and 75 per cent of non-management roles in private firms be reserved for local candidates. Violating the bill, ‘Karnataka State Employment of Local Candidates in Industries, Factories, and Other Establishments Bill, 2024’ will incur a penalty of up to Rs 25,000. 

To get through those reserved positions, candidates must have a secondary school certificate with Kannada as a language or pass a Kannada proficiency test. 

The bill mandates the companies to train and engage local talent within three years if suitable candidates are not available. It also defines a ‘local candidate’ as one who has resided in the state for 15 years, is fluent in Kannada, and has passed a test administered by the nodal agency. 

REACTION TO THE BILL

Social media has been abuzz with opinions on the new bill. While many see this as an essential move, many think it is imperative to prioritise talent over a mandate such as this. 

While a social media user said this is likely to be struck down by court, another said this would set precedence for other states, who would come up with similar bills. A user on X said that companies would think twice before investing in Karnataka would now think twice, and yet another user said this move would take the state back by many years.

Some, however, supported the decision and said this would preserve local culture, while another said this is a big move for local talent in the state. A user said that all the tech jobs in the state have gone to people who are not themselves from Karnataka and this would help local talent, while another saw merit in “right of the locals to claim the resources first”.