Left unwanted in my own country

This article is written by an electronic and communication engineering (ECE) graduate from Delhi. He pursued ECE course after he qualified for the government scholarship in India. However, after returning from India with a degree in ECE, he desperately started hunting for job in Bhutan when he finally discovered that the degree he has is not at all required here. Also, he found out rather shockingly that the system of higher education, job fair management and human resource recruitment is flawed. Further, he is vehemently disgruntled at the way GNH is being formulated by the policymakers in Bhutan. Read it below:

A handful of us from Bhutan pursued bachelors degree in electronic and communication engineering (ECE) in Delhi. For the last four years, we banged our heads, cracked the equations, and lived within the world full of signals. With a degree in our hands and of course in a great expectation, we came home but only to meet with a hurricane of unemployment and disappointment. No company or agency in Bhutan recruits ECE graduates.

In a country like India or even in rest of the world, the ECE graduates are gainfully employed in the fields of electronic and communication engineering, IT, electrical and electronic engineering. It is because the same subject of electrical and IT are being covered up in the ECE syllabus. But it’s very sad to discover that in our country, companies and agencies do not accept our job applications for the post of electrical and IT. Just to let others know, the ECE is considered the toughest and very special among the engineering courses all over the world. But, alas, in our country, we are treated like a weed in a field. We are unwanted.

During the National Graduate Orientation Program 2011, we raised our concern regarding the matter and we did even through  Kuensel. However, our genuine concern is still unheard. It’s being blatantly disregarded by the concerned authorities. It’s sheer inconsideration of youth’s voice, I must say. Imagine the repercussions when we, the youth of Bhutan, raise our concern on the matter or decision-making processes or policies that affect us and our policymakers keep on ignoring it. This kind of system only makes us further frustrated, unhappy and under-utilization of human resource. More bluntly, this may breed anarchism and terrorism in our otherwise peaceful soil.

We did the preliminary entrance (PE) exam for the CSCE general very recently and we got through it, but it is more disheartening to know now that we are not allowed to sit for the CSCE 2011. The RCSC officials reasoned us that there is not a single vacancy for the ECE graduates in the government sectors. If there’s no vacancy for the ECE graduates or if they cannot recruit the ECE graduates for the electrical or IT slots then why the RCSC let us appeared the PE? They have wasted our precious time and indeed money. Let me give another justification. If there’s no requirement of the ECE graduates in Bhutan then why the education ministry sent us out for pursuing this course in India?

Funny thing is that the RCSC and MoLHR officials and even the agents hiring job seekers during job fair do not know that ECE course ever exists. Even officials holding high ranks are unaware of this course. For example, during a job fair in recent time, a representative of a company doesn’t know the differences of B.E and B. Tech.  More embarrassing was that they don’t even know about the procedure to recruitment. When we explained about the courses, they blatantly denied us saying that they are not qualified to accept our job applications. As a job seeker, I shall honestly throw this feedback to our concerned authority that the job fairs being held in Bhutan are not up to the expectation of the job seekers. It immediately requires improvement in professionalism and quality. 

It’s also frustrating to always hear our policymakers and senior bureaucrats giving their speeches and deliverance on upholding GNH values, but all in vain while implementing it. Ours is also a country where the voices of poor and youth are never attended to and where poor will become poorer and the rich richer.  Also, we see our policymakers delivering speeches and mostly they utter that youth are the future leaders and GNH the stepping stone to our country’s economic growth. But I see youth which consisted about 50 percent of the Bhutanese population are being sidelined and left uncared. The existing policies or any legal procedure do not support and empower our youth.  

Here, if you really care for the future nation builders, I keep my hand on my heart and hope that all the concerned authorities attend to our genuine concerns and bring necessary positive changes la.