Mumbai job frenzy: 25,000 applicants show up for job interview with Rs 20,000 salary, cause stampede-like situation

On a sweltering Tuesday, over 25,000 job seekers reportedly descended upon Mumbai’s Kalina for a walk-in interview hosted by Air India Airport Services Ltd. The company had advertised 2,216 vacancies for the handyman position, a role requiring various repair and maintenance tasks. Despite the limited number of openings, the sheer volume of applicants led to chaos, highlighting the fierce competition for employment in the region.

The scene outside the recruitment office quickly turned chaotic as thousands jostled for a chance at the job. To prevent a stampede, officials asked applicants to submit their resumes and leave, promising to review all submissions and contact eligible candidates for further steps. Despite the physical demands of the job, including heavy lifting and operational tasks, the role's salary, ranging from Rs 20,000 to Rs 25,000 per month, with potential earnings exceeding Rs 30,000 through overtime, drew a massive crowd.
George Abram, General Secretary of the Aviation Industry Employees Guild, criticised the disorganised recruitment process. "People came for thousands of vacancies. They brought demand drafts, but we told them not to pay anything yet and that they would be called in later," Abram stated. He claimed that up to 50,000 job seekers might have turned up, though the official count was about 15,000.

The incident underscores the acute joblessness and the desperate measures people are willing to take to secure employment, even in physically demanding roles. The minimum qualification for the positions was a 10th-grade pass, and the age limit was capped at 23 years.

Similar instances in the past

This chaotic scene in Mumbai is not an isolated incident. Similar situations have occurred in other parts of India, reflecting the broader employment crisis. On July 9, a comparable incident unfolded in Gujarat when around 1,000 people showed up for walk-in interviews conducted by a private firm for just 40 vacancies at Ankleshwar. The chaos resulted in the collapse of a ramp railing, though no injuries were reported.
In another instance, a video from Pune showed over 3,000 engineers lining up for a walk-in interview aimed at filling junior developer positions. The overwhelming response for approximately 100 vacancies highlighted the intense competition in the IT sector.

These instances paint a grim picture of the employment landscape in India. The overwhelming response to job vacancies, whether in manual labour or skilled sectors, indicates a significant gap between job availability and the number of job seekers.