Jammu and Kashmir Government has ensured to establish a new transparent recruitment system for the youth without any favouritism and discrimination.
Unemployment in Jammu and Kashmir has remained a big concern for 70 years and in the absence of a private sector, the people used to do anything to get a prestigious government job as it was considered a guarantee for a secure future.
For the first time in history of Jammu and Kashmir, recruitments have been done on merit basis, in transparent manner which is a living example of how corruption-free, transparent and just system contributes to the progress of the marginalized class and wherever wrongdoings were alleged, investigation was launched by credible and top law enforcement agencies.
Recently, J&K Lieutenant Governor, Manoj Sinha, cancelled the recruitment of Sub-Inspectors in J&K Police after some aspirants alleged that the process was not carried out in a fair manner. The complaint of the candidates was acted upon promptly and an enquiry committee was set up. The panel pointed out discrepancies in the selection process. Without wasting any time, Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha, cancelled the list, and made it clear that no one will be selected through a backdoor.
Speaking on the employment opportunities across J&K, Chief Secretary Dr Arun Kumar Mehta, stated that “there was a wrong perception that there were no jobs in the Union Territory”. “Let me tell you that the J&K government has given the highest number of civilian jobs in its history last year. Jobs are there but they are not in the market for sale,” he said.
Notably, during the ongoing Parliament session Union Minister of State for Home, Nityanand Rai informed the House that from August 2019 up to June 2022, 29,806 aspirants were recruited by the J&K Government and nearly 5.2 lakh jobs were created through self-employment schemes.
During the past three years, the government has introduced numerous self-employment schemes to help the youngsters to set up their ventures. Mission youth has been one of the most rewarding initiatives on behalf of the J&K administration.
The ‘Mumkin’ (livelihood generation) scheme under Mission Youth has helped unemployed youth to procure small commercial vehicles, on a subsidised basis, to establish a sustainable livelihood line in the transport sector. The “Spurring Entrepreneurship Initiative” scheme is based on the theme Youth Enterprise with Innovation (YouWiN)/ Champion for Innovation program for encouraging young entrepreneurs’ especially young women towards innovations in various enterprises.
Similarly, the “Tejaswani” (Radiant) scheme is aimed to promote entrepreneurship among young women. It envisages giving financial assistance up to Rs 5 lakh to young women for setting up gainful self-employment ventures, suited to their skills, training, aptitude and local conditions.
Another programme “Sahyta” has been rolled out to provide a special financial assistance program for youth in distress. Financial assistance of Rs 2 lakh is being provided under the scheme to youth in distress for setting up gainful self-employment units.
Under sector specific scheme for dental professionals, a customised financial support is being provided to dentists for setting up dental clinics. An amount of 8 lakh is provided as financial assistance under this scheme for setting up their venture.
Another scheme “Rise Together” envisions promoting community-based entrepreneurship optimally to generate jobs, and income and promote the spirit of social service among new-age young entrepreneurs in the Himalayan region. Under the scheme, the eligible youth groups are provided with financial assistance to the extent of Rs 20 lakh comprising of upfront subsidy component minimum of Rs 2.5 lakh or 10 per cent of the project cost and a loan provided by the Bank, 70 per cent of the project cost to the extent of Rs 17.50 lakh.
To fill in the gap between demand and supply of skilled workforce and to create a strong environment for professionals and technical skill development in Jammu and Kashmir, the government has roped in prominent organisations like ICICI Foundation, Tata Technologies Ltd, Primal Foundation, Wipro, among others for working on upgrading skills of youth in the sectors having high employability potential like banking & financial services, digital marketing, media management etc.
