Jammu: Claiming that Jammu and Kashmir was transforming on an unprecedented scale and speed, the Union Territory Lieutenant Governor, Manoj Sinha said on Monday that improving people’s living standards, reforming rural & urban infrastructure and unlocking potential of women and youth from marginalized sections was top-most priority of his government.
Speaking in the first Janjatiya Gaurav Diwas to mark the celebration of Birsa Munda’s birth anniversary, at Kala Kendra here on Monday, the LG said that the sacrifices and contribution of the Tribal community in the independence struggle are immense, incomparable and invaluable, an official spokesperson said.
He said that the LG further stated that under the guidance of PM, J&K is empowering those who were discriminated against since ages.
“Apart from implementation of forest rights act, we are making endeavours for socio-economic development of Scheduled Tribes through special educational, infrastructure and livelihood schemes,” Sinha said, as per official spokesperson.
The LG, he said, also observed that emphasis is being laid on empowering Tribal community so that they can live a life of self respect and dignity.
“J&K is transforming on an unprecedented scale and speed. Improving people’s living standards, reforming rural & urban infrastructure and unlocking potential of women and youth from marginalized sections is our top-most priority,” the LG said.
Participating in the celebrations of Janjatiya Gaurav Diwas, the official spokesperson said that the LG gave his best wishes to all the tribal entrepreneurs and personalities associated with art, culture and literary world present on the occasion.
He said that the LG underscored the need to make the young generation aware about the sacrifices and struggle of tribal freedom fighters and said that along with Bhagwan Birsa Munda, heroes such as Rani Gaidinliu, Alluri Sitharama Raju, Komaram Bheem, Shankar Shah, Raghunath Shah, Khajya Nayak, Sitaram Kanwar, Bhima Nayak and many other made supreme sacrifices for the tribal community and gave immense contribution for a new India.
Sinha, he said, also remembered Mali Begum of Poonch who had saved the border district from falling into the hands of enemies in the 1971 war, and 1965 war hero Mohammad Deen Jagir, who was awarded the Padma Shree by the Government of India.
According to the official spokesperson, the LG said that PM Modi has extended equal rights to a large population of tribal community in Jammu and Kashmir through his historic decision to implement Forests Rights Act 2006.
“The Lt Governor mentioned about transit accommodations being established at eight place at the cost of Rs 28 crores with facilities of medical camp, extra tents, animal sheds etc; Tribal Health Plan worth Rs 8 crores; 500 youth to be selected for advance training like pilot, robotics, management; arrangements for 1521 Seasonal School, etc,” he said.
Sinha, he said, called on the new generation to take inspiration and follow the path of their tribal ancestors who made contributions, sacrifices and served the tribal society, imbibing the values of their culture and rich heritage with a true heart.
“He also urged all the thinkers and artists of the society to come together with the Tribal Department to further enrich the tribal cultural heritage,” the official spokesperson said.
On this occasion, he said, the LG also inaugurated a Photo exhibition on “Tribal Communities of J&K”, an exhibition displaying “Various Tribal Arts and Crafts”.
Sets Target Of 2 Lakh Cases Under SES
Meanwhile, in a move that could help educated, unemployed youth to earn their livelihood, the Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor, Manoj Sinha on Monday set the target of two lakh cases for the Union Territory administration for sanctioning and financing under the self employment schemes.
Chairing a meeting at the Civil Secretariat here to review the status of self employment schemes with secretaries and senior bank officials, the LG issued directions for the skill development department to utilize cutting edge technology to fulfill the real time needs of the industry, an official spokesperson said.
The LG, he said, directed that SC, ST, OBC and women entrepreneurs should be given special focus in the self-employment schemes and asked the DCs to ensure the saturation of social security schemes and basic amenities, especially in far-flung and border areas.
“The Lt Governor has asked the Banks to lay out uniform criteria for ensuring that no deserving candidate is denied the financial inclusion benefits due to trivial reasons. He directed them to designate nodal officers who will ensure the timely disposal of loans to the beneficiaries of employment generation schemes,” he added.
Impressing upon the Secretaries of concerned departments and Deputy Commissioners to saturate the coverage of various schemes including KCC, Mudra, Fasal Bima Yojana and others, Sinha, as per the official spokesperson said that departmental coordination and involvement of all stakeholders including Banks, Cooperatives, Departments of Skill Development, and Labour and Employment is imperative for achieving the desired results of benefitting the common man of the UT.
The LG, he said, reiterated his directions of identifying minimum five youth from each panchayat for skill development and hand holding, with dedicated focus on the border and remote areas of the UT.
In the meeting, the official spokesperson said that the LG expressed dismay over the low CD ratio of banks and issued strict directions to the heads of respective banks to increase their CD to more than the minimum benchmark of 40%.
“He asked the Commissioner/Secretary, Planning, Development and Monitoring Department to regularly collect data from the banks and coordinate with them so as to ensure optimum available opportunities to the unemployed youth,” he said.
“He further directed for developing a common dashboard for monitoring the process and ensuring that all the benefits of intended self employment schemes are extended to the grassroot level,” he added.
According to the official spokesperson, Sinha also issued instructions for the marketing and forward linkages for finished handicraft and other local products.
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