Schools, colleges should be part of skill development ecosystem: Union MoS

Asks Zunheboto district admin to set up skill development plan

Morung Express News
Zunheboto | September 27

On his maiden visit to Zunheboto district, Union Minister of State for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship Rajeev Chandrasekhar asked the district administration officials to set up a district skill development plan that maps local aspirations and creates opportunities for jobs and entrepreneurship.

Addressing a meeting with the heads of offices and various sections of the community on September 26, the Minister stated that the emphasis should be on making optimum use of local resources and reducing migration to urban centres.

Reviewing the implementation of Central government schemes, Chandrasekhar urged the functionaries to work zealously until the last mile is covered, every voice is heard, and every grievance is addressed as envisioned by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

He told the officials that the skill development plan should be set up by mapping the aspirations of the people from the ‘ground up’ and by making schools and colleges part of the skill development ecosystem as part of the strategy to mitigate the unemployment.

District authorities should do the ground work on what are the capabilities, the aspirations; what the inputs from industries are and what the inputs from educational institutions are, so as to determine the kind of skill development that needs to be delivered in the district, he said. 

In the agriculture and handicrafts sector, he said that “structural issues should be looked at by the state government, to try to connect the entrepreneurs to the market, and create an atmosphere for the investors.”

On the occasion, Zunheboto Deputy Commissioner Rahul Bhanudas Mali gave a presentation, highlighting the agriculture sector, electricity, lack of IT infrastructures, MSMEs, as well as the ongoing schemes in the district. 

Sümi Hoho submits representation
The Sümi Hoho meanwhile submitted a representation to the Minister, stating among others, the need for upgrades at the Khelhoshe Polytechnic Atoizu (KPA), the oldest polytechnic institute in the state.

In the representation, the Sümi Hoho apprised that the KPA was now accredited by the National Board of Accreditation and the state government has approved the introduction of engineering degree courses in the institute. However, it underscored that the Institute needs many technical and infrastructural developments in order to cater to the many students who come from every nook and corner of Nagaland.

In this connection, the Sümi Hoho urged the Minister to provide “ultrafast internet broadband, 1 gps fibre broadband at the KPA,” and also to set up a “Central Computing Facility of 50 computers with 10 high end servers” for the Institute as well as the community.

Further, it also stated that Zunheboto, by location, was at the heart of the state and is inhabited by the Sümi people one of the largest and the major tribes of Nagaland. However, to the lack of facilities required for skills and human resource development, the Sümi community is still far behind in many walks of life and unemployment is surging, it said.

Towards this, the representation stated that the existing Industrial Training Institute was “not in a congenial location” and has only a few trades. As such, the Sümi Hoho urged Minister Chandrasekhar to “provide sufficient funds for establishing a new campus with proper infrastructure and also to introduce all the district demand driven trades,” so that the people can be trained and get avenues of employments and services.

During the meeting, Sümi Hoho President, I Nikheto Jimomi also appealed the Union Minister of State to speed up the Naga political solution as it was the aspiration of every Nagas.

Chandrasekhar assured to meet the demands as placed by the Sümi Hoho in terms of skill development and other technical issues. However, on the larger scale that is the Naga political issue, he maintained that it was ‘beyond his pay scale.’

Nevertheless, ‘as an Indian and as a brother to Nagas,’ he stated that the future of Nagaland was very bright and promising, especially for the youths, as there are a lot of investments in tourism that can create hundreds and thousands of jobs provided the atmosphere is safe for the investors. This safety will come from a political solution, he said, while adding that he would take the message back to his seniors. 

He further expressed hope that very soon, there would come a point in the history of India and Nagaland where ‘we can talk about the bright future and not keep looking back.’

The Minister also thanked the district for the warm welcome he was accorded during the visit. 

Following the activities in Zunheboto, Chandrasekhar who has been on a three-day visit to Nagaland also visited the Sümi Baptist Church in Zunheboto–known as the largest Baptist church in Asia.

Later in the afternoon, he left for Wokha, where he attended series of meetings with district officials, social workers, business community representatives, apart from the Elders of the Longsa Council Hall and functionaries of Lotha Hoho and Eloe Hoho organisations.

In both the districts, Chandrasekhar held meetings with BJP Leaders and party workers and shared with them the vision of PM Modi for a New India based on ‘Sabka Saath Sabka Vikas Sabka Vishwas and Sabka Prasad,’ informed a press note from the PS to the Union Minister of State.

Source: https://morungexpress.com/schools-colleges-should-be-part-of-skill-development-ecosystem-union-mos