Srinagar, Dec 17: Chief Minister Omar Abdullah Saturday expressed concern over safety of Kashmiris who will be working outside Jammu and Kashmir in private sector under a centrally sponsored scheme. Omar’s concern was shared by Union Minister for Rural Development, Jairam Ramesh, saying the Chief Minister has a point and Kashmiri youth should not be “tagged.”
They were speaking at launching ceremony of “Himayat,” a program meant to provide skill, empowerment and special training to youth, at Kashmir University here. The two handed over job orders in private sector to first group of youth under the central scheme.
Omar said Kashmiri youth is looked upon with a “suspicious eye” in outside states and it is not an easy decision for the state government and the parents of the youth to send them to outside states for jobs.
Almost 1059 youth including boys and girls who were imparted skilled training under the Job Plan which was recommended by a committee headed by Chairman Prime Minister’s Economic Advisory Council, Dr C Rangarajan, have been hired by private business houses in and outside JK.
The youth have been provided skilled training for working in different areas like BPOs and computer institutions, coffee shops, garment houses and insurances companies.
Omar said the success of this program lies in how outside states and their governments treat the state youth.
“State government and the parents of the youth are concerned whether their wards with be looked upon with a suspicious eye. Time and again I have asked outside governments and the Chief Ministers not to doubt Kashmiris. Every Kashmiri is not a militant and does not want destruction. They are seen suspiciously on January 26 and August 15 celebrations,” Omar said.
Omar minced no words in saying that reports of different committees set up by the Government of India in past on Kashmir have been “thrown into dustbin.”
“I am thankful that this report has not met the same fate,” he said.
In JK, Omar said, Committees come and go. “Once they complete their work, the results are nowhere to be seen,” he said. He was referring to the five Working Groups which were set up by Prime Minister in 2005 to recommend for addressing political and economical problems of the state whose recommendation are gathering dust in New Delhi.
It is unfortunate, Omar said, that private sector was not encouraged in JK during good times and the initiative was only taken when situation worsened.
“We were ignored in IT revolution. This day is important because we are going in a new direction to encourage our youth to join private sector,” Omar said.
Responding to the Omar’s apprehension on safety, Ramesh told reporters on the sidelines of the function that (Kashmiri) youth should not be “targeted with suspicion and tagged.”
“The Chief Minister has a point. But we will look into it seriously,” Ramesh responded to a query.
In the past, there have been many instances where Kashmiris including students, tourists and traders have been harassed by police and other security agencies in outside states including New Delhi, Kerela, Maharashtra and Chandigarh.
Many a times Kashmiris were detained by police and released only after intervention by the families and state government.
Earlier, the Union Minister termed the event as a “small step in long journey ahead.”
He said one lakh youth have to be trained and provided employment. “We promise a lot but do not see how many promises are fulfilled. We assure that we will keep our promise,” he said.
Under the Himayat – 3 month training cum placement program developed by MoRD- one lakh youth will be trained by private companies and NGOs in 5 years. A youth belonging to the age group of 18-35 years belonging to a low income group is eligible and the preference has been given to the school dropouts.
Another 2000 youth will be trained by June next year for placement in the private sector. The job program which commenced in June this year will cost Rs 235.3 crore and will be cent percent funded by Government of India. It will cover youth from both Below Poverty Line and non-BPL categories from rural and urban areas.
Under a separate program, Udaan, meant from graduates from universities and professional institutions, 40,000 youth will be trained and recruited in different companies in next five years.
The private sector institutions such as IL&FS and Don Bosco Technical Institute have been chosen to impart the training to the youths, who would be selected for the program on the basis of applications.
The job plan was recommended by Rangarajan-led panel which was set up by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh last year to suggest measures to enhance employment opportunities in J&K and formulate a plan involving both private and public sectors. Its constitution followed the 2010 summer unrest in which more than 115 Kashmiri youth fell to the bullets of government forces. The report suggested a two pronged approach to employment generation- identify sectoral initiatives for growth and employment generation and increase employability of youth by improving skill sets.
In his speech, Rangarajan said state’s unemployment problem can be addressed by pushing up its economic growth. He said there was a scope for taking initiatives in major sectors of state economy including Agriculture and Horticulture.
“If we have to provide jobs in the state, its economy has to grow and for that matter initiatives have to be taken in Agriculture, Horticulture, Tourism and other sectors. It will help accelerate growth and support economy,” Rangarajan said. “The answer to provide safe future to the youth lies in economic growth of Jammu and Kashmir.”
Vice-Chancellor, Kashmir University, Prof Talat Ahmad expressed his gratitude to MoRD and state government for holding the program in Kashmir University. He hoped that another job program Udaan would be kicked off from the Kashmir University.

Lastupdate on : Sat, 17 Dec 2011 21:30:00 Makkah time
Lastupdate on : Sat, 17 Dec 2011 18:30:00 GMT
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