After August 5, 2019, when the Centre announced its decision to revoke the special status of Jammu and Kashmir and divided it into two Union Territories, the government began addressing the issue of unemployment in the Himalayan region.
After J&K became a Union Territory, many self-employment schemes were introduced for the youth and the process to fill up vacancies in government departments was expedited.
According to officials, more than 15,000 vacancies have been filled up in government departments and thousands of young men and women have been provided employment through various self-employment schemes in ‘Naya Jammu and Kashmir’ during the past three years.
According to the data collected through the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS), conducted by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) on employment and unemployment since 2017-18, the estimated ‘Unemployment Rate’ in J&K was 6.7 per cent during 2019-20 and 5.9 per cent during 2020-21, which clearly reveals that the unemployment rate in J&K is on the decline.
Under Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana (PMMY) launched by the government to facilitate self-employment in J&K, ₹ 4209.69 crore were disbursed in 1.89 lakh loan accounts during 2022-23 till November 25, 2022, officials said.
Similarly, since the inception of the Aatmanirbhar Bharat Rozgar Yojana (ABRY) scheme, benefits of ₹ 35.39 crore were provided to 19,340 beneficiaries under the scheme in J&K till November 28, 2022, they said.
According to data, Under Prime Minister Street Vendor’s Atma Nirbhar Nidhi ((PMSVANidhi) scheme, since its inception on June 1, 2020, 17,950 loans were disbursed as on December 2 in J&K.
The centrally sponsored schemes like Prime Minister’s Employment Generation Programme (PMEGP), Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS), Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Grameen Kaushalya Yojana (DDU-GKY) and Deen Dayal Antyodaya Yojana-National Urban Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NULM) have provided employment to lakhs of youth across the Union Territory.
According to data, More than 15,000 vacancies in various government departments have been filled up in the past three years while the selection process for 8,000 more is in progress.
Sharing the details of recruitment, officials said that, In 2021, the J&K Service Selection Board filled up 9300 posts, while this year 4500 new recruits were appointed and in 2020, 1500 posts were filled up.
In the recently held Rozgar Mela the selected Candidates for the class-IV posts under phase two were handed over appointment letters by Lt Governor Manoj Sinha in Srinagar and Chief Secretary Arun K Mehta in Jammu.
Under the first phase, more than 5,000 candidates have been given appointment letters after the government mandated the JKSSB to make recommendations for class-IV recruitments in all departments, officials said.
In Health and Medical Education Department the process is on to fill up 1,400 vacant posts and it’s likely to be completed very soon. Another 1,150 posts of junior engineers were advertised recently and the exercise to select the candidates would commence shortly, a govt statement said.
Abrogation of Article 370 and J&K’s transition into a Union Territory have proven to be a blessing for a common man. The decision taken by the regime led by Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, has proven beyond doubt that the so-called special status of J&K was nothing but an impediment which prevented the Himalayan region from moving on the path of peace, prosperity and development.
Officials said During the past three years, the government has put in massive efforts to empower the youth in Jammu and Kashmir. The hand-holding of youth has done wonders. They have been provided with different platforms to choose what they want so that they can shape their careers and move ahead in their lives.
Politicians, who ruled J&K for 70-long years, just gave lollipops to youngsters instead of helping them with jobs and self-employment schemes.
When J&K started functioning as a Union Territory in October 2019 there was a huge army of daily wagers and contractual employees, who the former rulers told they would be regularized, but the promises made to them proved to be a hoax.
During the past three years, the J&K administration led by Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha has been trying to accommodate the temporary workers in one or another way so that their livelihood isn’t snatched. But the baggage the present J&K dispensation is carrying is huge, a government statement said.
In the face of massive developments, ‘big Politicians’ in Kashmir are finding it hard to believe that the issues which they sat over for 70-long years have been resolved within three years and the people have welcomed the change in J&K’s status quo with open arms. The change has left them (politicians) worried as they have realized that their future is bleak. Ordinary people in J&K are not paying any heed to the slogans being raised by them, the statement added.
It said that Instead, they ask genuine questions like, why did the leaders in whom they reposed their faith betray them? Why no effort was put in by the so-called tall leaders to bring J&K to par with the other regions of the country? Why was a common man misled by the pretext of him having a special identity?
The statement further added that despite getting exposed and facing embarrassment Kashmir-based political leaders are still talking about getting Article 370 back. These leaders are still peddling lies by raising hollow slogans. Article 370 was a temporary provision in the Constitution. It was scrapped by the PM Modi-led dispensation three years ago and there is no possibility of it coming back.
Besides creating employment avenues for J&K’s generation-next the government has ensured that the ground situation improves.
According to officials, there has been a massive improvement in security in Jammu and Kashmir after the abrogation of article 370. A Handful of separatists, who had taken Kashmir and Kashmiris hostage for the past three decades at the behest of Pakistan have been cut to size. Most of them are languishing in jails while the ones who are out don’t talk about ‘Azadi’ and Pakistan anymore.
The Statement said the positivity prevailing in J&K is a net result of the initiatives and the moves that have been made by the Centre during the past three years. The energies of youngsters have been channelized in a positive manner. Laptops and pens have replaced stones.