Dr. Mahendra Nath Pandey met Uttarakhand CM Trivendra Singh Rawat to promote skilling and entrepreneurship in the state
Dehradun, December 10, 2019: Dr. Mahendra Nath Pandey, Minister for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) today met Chief Minister of Uttarakhand, Shri Trivendra Singh Rawat, and decided to set up a Centre of Excellence for skilling in the Uttarkashi area of the state. The ministers also decided on a slew of reforms to bring to the state towards achieving the goals set out as part of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Skill India Mission. It was also decided that the MSDE would send a dedicated team of experts to Uttarakhand to discuss new avenues for promotion of skill development and entrepreneurship with key state government officials, across key sectors such as wellness, healthcare, tourism and adventure sports.
Further, as a result of the meeting, it was decided that the Centre would release the last tranche of budgets necessary under Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY) to further boost the skilling eco-system across the state.
Given the growing popularity of tourism in the state, language courses in foreign language for tourist guides will be launched. The two ministers discussed the progress of various skilling initiatives at length and emphasized on the importance of creating a holistic ecosystem for skilling and entrepreneurship for employment creation. To ensure that the skilling potential of the state is used to its fullest extent, it was decided that a Skill University will be established to create abundant opportunities for empowerment of youth in Uttarakhand.
Emphasizing on the importance of creating a conducive skilling ecosytem, the Minister said, “The Ministry for Skill Development was formed to give skill development the importance it deserved. The youth of the country are a huge untapped resource that can take the country to new heights. Through skilling, we are able to tap into the immense potential of our youth and empower them to be globally competitive, and enable them to contribute to the economy as a whole. The state of Uttarakhand has fast emerged as one of the most important states in the country. Be it tourism or industry, the contribution of the state is immense. With the measures that we have decided to take today, I am sure that the state, under the leadership of Shri Trivendra Singh Rawat, will emerge as one of the biggest contributors to the country’s growth and prosperity.”
Sharing his views on the way forward, Shri Trivendra Singh Rawat said, “We have been working relentlessly to strengthen the skilling ecosystem in Uttarakhand and empower the Indian youth with world-class skills. The youth of Uttarakhand are the strength of the state. Our efforts are completely aligned with Skill India mission, right from creating awareness to training and helping youth connect with leading organizations to leverage the right opportunities for a better livelihood. We thank the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship for their continued support and contribution in development of skilling and entrepreneurship in Uttarakhand.”
Nearly 75,000 candidates have been successfully trained under the government’s flagship PMKVY scheme. Further, over 25,000 youngsters have been counselled under ‘Skill Saathi’ scheme that aims to counsel candidates from the age group of 15– 35 years focusing on school & college drop-outs and young adults from the community. There are 104 ITIs that have been set up in Uttarakhand that have successfully trained close to 20,000 candidates.
