Army on Friday said that forces were reaching out to the underprivileged children in Pir Panchal range and providing “best possible” facilities for the education of the youth in the underdeveloped area.
“Most of the far-flung areas of Surankot and Thanamandi tehsil district Poonch are adjoining the Pir Panchal range lack education facilities,” said, PRO, Defence, Lt Col Devender Anand, in a statement issued here. “The area also has non-availability of basic road infrastructure.”
The PRO said maximum villages like Hill Kaka are in higher reaches of Pir Panchal range and these areas have always been in the clutches of poverty and unemployment. “Militancy in the yesteryears further downgraded living conditions and education standard of the region,” he said.
The defence PRO said that the youth were inclined towards education but lack of good educational institutes, vocational training centres, technical and medical institutes has forced them to choose manual labour and menial jobs to earn their livehood.
“Women here are also living without any formal education in their near vicinity and therefore there is an urgent need to involve women in the digital revolution that is sweeping across the entire nation and provide them with an opportunity to see the wider horizon of the developing India.”
The statement claimed that the “Indian Army has played a vital role by providing youth of the district with the skill development programs, technical courses, pre-recruitment training for joining armed forces and admissions in Vocational Training Centres.”
It said that the “women empowerment projects to empower women of the region have also been initiated. Most of the schools located at far flung locations have been sponsored through various Sadbhavana projects for up-liftment of infrastructure development.”