SRINAGAR: Chief Secretary, Atal Dulloo, today reviewed a detailed presentation by the Planning, Development & Monitoring Department on “Youth Engagement: Building Tomorrow’s Leaders”, which outlines an integrated framework aimed at empowering the youth of Jammu and Kashmir through sports, culture, education, entrepreneurship, and digital innovation.
The meeting was attended by Principal Secretary, Culture; Commissioner Secretaries of GAD, Youth Services & Sports, and Floriculture; Secretaries of School Education, Health & Medical Education, and Skill Development Departments; besides several other Heads of Departments and senior officers.
At the outset, the Chief Secretary termed the youth engagement programme a significant step towards nurturing creativity, innovation, and leadership among young people across the Union Territory. He emphasized the need to make the initiative multidisciplinary so that every young person is engaged meaningfully in line with their individual talents and aspirations.
The Chief Secretary impressed upon departments, including Youth Services & Sports, Culture, School Education, Higher Education, Health, Rural Development, and others, to devise strategic departmental plans for engaging maximum youth across their respective sectors. He also directed the Deputy Commissioners to prepare district-specific action plans for effective on-ground implementation.
Highlighting the centrality of coordinated efforts, the Chief Secretary designated the Planning Department as the nodal agency for overall implementation and monitoring of the initiative. He instructed it to develop a unified online platform for uploading and tracking all youth engagement activities across departments. The General Administration Department (GAD) was tasked with framing a Steering Committee to ensure smooth inter-departmental coordination and effective execution of the programme.
Underscoring the need to leverage existing national-level initiatives, he called for tapping into schemes and platforms of the Ministry of Youth Affairs, such as My Bharat, NSS, Youth Exchange Activities, and Viksit Bharat Young Leaders Dialogue, which provide valuable exposure and skill-building opportunities for youth.
During the meeting, the Chief Secretary took feedback from Administrative Secretaries and Deputy Commissioners regarding their proposed strategies for maximising outreach and participation under the programme. He urged all departments and district administrations to adopt a collaborative and convergent approach, pooling resources and expertise for impactful implementation at the grassroots level. He further enjoined upon the Information Department to create necessary awareness among the public about the youth welfare schemes and other orientation programmes for furthering their career pursuits.
Presenting the framework, Director General, Planning, Satvir Kour, highlighted that the initiative seeks to harness the creativity and dynamism of youth recognizing them as key drivers of social transformation and economic progress. She said the programme would equip young people with life skills, values, and self-confidence, steering them away from vulnerabilities such as substance abuse, unemployment, and social evils.
The Strategic Action Plan presented covers multiple dimensions of engagement, including Sports and Cultural Development. Revival of traditional arts, crafts, and cultural festivals such as Sufi festivals, classical arts performances, literary gatherings, and visual arts exhibitions promoting J&K’s rich heritage while creating livelihood opportunities is going to be the innate part of this programme.
With respect to furthering the Education and Skill Development the action plan focuses on making education and vocational training more accessible, market-relevant, and skill-oriented to enhance employability and promote sustainable livelihoods.
Another key pillar of the strategy includes entrepreneurship and business development which envisages expanding access to startup ecosystems, incubation centres, and financial assistance through schemes like PMEGP, REGP, NRLM (Lakhpati Didis), and Startup J&K, to nurture a new generation of self-reliant entrepreneurs across agriculture, technology, tourism, and handicrafts.
Encouraging productive digital engagement through webinars, innovation contests, and online learning platforms to connect rural youth with experts and mentors, is another strategic feature of this youth engagement programme.
Further, the District Development Commissioners (DDCs) are going to identify two socio-economically backward blocks in each district and prepare targeted plans for youth engagement across education, skilling, cultural activities, sports, and livelihoods. The DDCs were also instructed to ensure extensive awareness among young citizens regarding various government welfare and empowerment schemes to encourage their proactive participation.
The meeting concluded with a resolve to make youth empowerment a collective mission, integrating efforts of all departments to channelize the energy and potential of the young population towards a vibrant, inclusive, and progressive Jammu and Kashmir.
