Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mufti Mohammed Sayeed today stressed the need to link education with employment and asked universities to take a lead in 'student ownership', which goes beyond mere symbolism of handing out degree certificates.
"We cannot afford to look the other way when it comes to finding the right kind of jobs for our youth. Universities are now required to get involved in not only imparting quality education but ensuring that education pays students dividends in the form of highly-remunerative jobs," he said.
The chief minister also asked the institutes of higher learning to foster an environment that prepares human resource better for bigger challenges ahead.
Today's students need far more knowledge and skill to compete and thrive at the cutting edge level, he said while addressing faculty members of the University of Jammu, after inaugurating the Administrative-cum-Academic Block of the Directorate of Sports and Physical Education of the university, here.
Favouring greater financial autonomy to the universities, Mufti said the education system has experienced important changes in recent past that have brought about a tactical shift in how the universities function.
He said the restructuring of the higher education system will help transform our cluster of colleges into full-fledged universities.
"There is no dearth of funds to promote education, but getting the desired results will require the universities to 'travel that extra mile' which will make a huge difference in shaping our youth's future in terms of securing jobs," he said.
Calling for dovetailing the architecture of the education system with new interventions like RUSA (Rashtriya Uchatar Shiksha Abhiyan), the Chief Minister said the corpus of funds earmarked under this Centrally-sponsored scheme must be optimally and efficiently utilized to obtain the goal of excellence in higher education.
While referring to the National Skill Development Mission which aims to provide a strong institutional framework for implementation of skilling activities, Mufti Sayeed, who is also the Pro-Chancellor of the Jammu University, called upon the Vice Chancellor to establish a School of Skill Development which enhances possibilities of employability and inculcates genes of entrepreneurship among our youth.
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"With the kind of boom our health and education
sectors are going to receive in future, we need skilled human resource to augment our infrastructure," the Chief Minister said while referring to two new AIIMS and five new medical colleges that are going to be set up which necessitates establishment of paramedic and nursing institutes in the state.
Promising to give a new direction to the promotion of sports and physical education in the state, Mufti Sayeed, exuded confidence that the Rs 200 crore package sanctioned by the Central government will provide fillip to develop the state-of-the-art sports infrastructure which hones the skills of our budding sportsmen.
He praised well-known cricketer Pervez Rasool for launching a cricket academy at Bijbehara which will inspire many youth to take up sports as a professional career.
"With this objective in mind, we have made DCs the chairmen of the District Sports Councils so that they promote sporting activities in a coordinated manner," he said.
Constructed at a cost of Rs 2.67 crore, the new administrative-cum-academic block will further promote sporting activities in the university. It will have facilities of classrooms, libraries as well as conference halls.
