New Delhi, Jun 17 (FN Agency) Union Minister of State for Labour and Employment (Independent Charge) Santosh Gangwar on Thursday said the country is committed to improving employment outcomes for all the youth, including women and vulnerable section of the people, through an enduring, long-term commitment for better opportunities. He said the Government is making all-out efforts to improve the bridge between education and employment, and to prepare young people for the future of work. A number of policies and schemes have been undertaken for upliftment of the youth through skills development, employment generation, and entrepreneurship programs.
Speaking after the signing of Statement of Intent between the Ministry of Labour and Employment and UNICEF here, the Minister said, by leveraging the strengths of the Ministry, UNICEF and associated network members, ‘we hope to enable abundant choices for our young generation to contribute and shape our country’s future.’ Appreciating the idea of partnership between the Ministry and UNICEF for empowering ‘our youths to gain relevant skills and guidance’, Mr Gangwar said, the collaboration is a starting point to facilitate direct dialogue and feedback mechanism between youth and other stakeholders including policy makers.’
Mr Gangwar said, India is a country of young people. According to Census 2011, every fifth person in India is a youth (15-24 years). He said the National Career Service (NCS), launched in 2015, caters to the employment and career needs of the youth. It provides a variety of employment related services like career counseling, vocational guidance, information on skill development courses, apprenticeship, internships etc. The Minister informed that NCS has taken a number of initiatives to mitigate the challenges in the labour market due to COVID-19 and the consequent lockdown of the economy. Online Job Fairs are being organised to bridge the gap between job seekers and employers where the complete cycle from job posting to selection of candidate can be completed on the portal.
A Special link for Work from Home Jobs and Online Trainings has been created on NCS portal to give direct access to job-seekers to such jobs. All these facilities on NCS are free of cost. Mr Gangwar expressed hope that in the next three years, both UNICEF and the Ministry of Labour and Employment will make great achievements in the areas of collaboration and empowerment of Indian youth to face the future confidently. Secretary (Labour and Employment), Mr Apurva Chandra, Special Secretary (Labour and Employment) and DGE, Ms Anuradha Prasad, Country Representative of UNICEF, Dr Yasmin Ali Haque, and senior officers from the Ministry and UNICEF India were present on the occasion.