Skilled to success
Being skilful is the latest mantra if one is looking for job opportunities. Even countries like Canada are seeking people with varied skills for settling in the country permanently. This simply means that even the basic skills that are required in various sectors like construction, manufacturing and other allied sectors are high in demand.
It is a known fact that killed labour forms the backbone of various developing economies in the world. The skilled labour not only contributes in the growth but also increases employment avenues for others. However, in a place like Kashmir which is known for higher number of unemployment rates, lack of skilled hands is making things worse.
Youth with their respective skills in varied trades including electric works, welding, plumbing, bricklaying, cookery and other related trades have a bright future if they put their skills to good use. The skilled manpower could not only address the unemployment issue in Jammu and Kashmir, by creating their own jobs, but their skills could also secure them a livelihood in other regions as well.
The youth in Jammu and Kashmir need to think out of the box as the demand for skilled labour has phenomenally increased across the world in the last few decades. Such is the relevance of skilled labour in countries like Australia and Canada that they are even offering permanent residency to people with skills that are in their demand list.
We in Kashmir are witnessing an imported labour phenomenon as most of the technical jobs that are to be carried out here are done by people who have come from other Indian states.
The need of the hour is that all the stakeholders including academic institutes, especially ITIs and Polytechnics, corporate sector, and government institutes need to come together in creating a skilled man force here. The move can help in bringing down the unemployment rate and ensure that new jobs are also created.
As per the Labour Bureau, Ministry of Labour and Employment, Government of India (GOI), Jammu and Kashmir has very high unemployment rate. Jammu and Kashmir has 72 unemployed persons per thousand, which means the number of unemployed youth in the state is over 9 lakh based on the 2011 census.
The figure cannot be exact for sure but certainly the unemployment rates here are quite visible and it reflects on various activities that the youth get involved in once they sit idle.
Ironically, the number of unemployed youth registered in various district employments and counselling centers was 6.01 lakh few years back. This figure has swelled even further as of now. Officials say the number would touch more than 10 lakh in 2020 as thousands of youths pass out from various universities and colleges every year.
The government reports and figures collected from various other surveys points out that nearly 40 percent youth, in the age group of 15 to 30 years, are unemployed in Jammu and Kashmir and that the number was higher than the national level.
Unemployment of the younger members in our society is a major challenge, and to tide over the crisis we need to stress on helping them to seek skills that will enhance their employability. This can prove to be a worthwhile contribution towards the welfare of our youth.
