MoS PMO launches skill development centre, lauds Indian youth

NEW DELHI: Indian youths are second to none in the world and are capable of making a niche for themselves wherever they take up a vocation within the country or abroad, Union Minister Jitendra Singh said today.

Inaugurating the IMS Health Skill Development Centre under the aegis of ' UDAAN' programme, Singh, here today, said it was aimed at empowering the youth of Jammu and Kashmir with active support and assistance from central government.

Referring to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's 'Skill India' mission, the Minister of State in Prime Minister's Office said the answer to rising number of educated unemployed is to make the best use of the central government's skill development schemes.

Singh lauded initiatives like 'UDAAN' and public-private participation through agencies like IMS Health, one of the world's leading providers of healthcare services and training.

The Special Industry Initiative for Jammu and Kashmir, 'Udaan' scheme is to provide skills and enhance employability of 40,000 youth over a period of five years beginning 2013 in key high-growth sectors.

The scheme is being implemented by the National Skill Development Council ( NSDC) and the corporate sector in PPP mode.

The Minister referred to the recent skill training programme initiated by him on voluntary basis in district Doda under his Udhampur parliamentary constituency with specific aim to train the youth in the kind of skill which can beget them employment locally.

With this consideration, he said, the skill development programme initiated in Doda would provide training in local surveys and mapping, which could make these youth employable by a host of different hydro and power projects running in the district.