Union Minister of Skill Development (Independent Charge), Minister of State for Education in the Modi government and Rashtriya Lok Dal President Jayant Chaudhary says that there is a need to establish a High Court bench in Western Uttar Pradesh.
So that people get relief from travelling hundreds of kilometres. ‘Hindustan’s political editor Madan Zaira talked to him on various issues.
Are you going to do something special for Western Uttar Pradesh?
Being a minister of the central government, the entire country is my priority. But, we have a strong political base in western Uttar Pradesh.
We have public representatives there. I think that some big work or big projects are needed there in the field of health and education.
Skill development activities will be promoted in industrial centres. Recently, during a meeting at Chaudhary Charan Singh University, it came to light that many districts of western Uttar Pradesh do not have Jan Shikshan Sansthans. This is being reviewed.
Similarly, new technical courses can be started in the universities of western Uttar Pradesh which are centres of education, with the help of CSR.
Right now all I can say is that whenever any file related to Baghpat, Meerut, Muzaffarnagar or Mathura comes on my desk, it will not take long to get approved.
No central university has been opened in western Uttar Pradesh for a long time. Will you take the initiative?
Of course there is no other central university except Aligarh Muslim University. But, I cannot say anything about it right now.
There is a very old demand that a High Court bench be established in Western Uttar Pradesh, what would you say on this?
Chaudhary Ajit Singh always supported this demand. Meanwhile, the matter has reached the Union Law Minister as well. Proposals have also been sent from the state side.
The Chief Justice of India and the state government have to decide on this issue. Recently, the Law Minister also clarified the situation on this issue in Parliament.
I hope this will be linked with judicial reforms to reduce the number of pending cases in the High Courts.
Litigants should not have to travel 600-700 kms unnecessarily. How many people have been trained so far under the skill development programme, and how many people have got employment?
So far, 1.48 crore people have been trained under the Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana.
About 50 per cent of these people were already doing some work and were given training to enhance their skills or for reskilling.
Of the new recruits who were trained, 41 per cent got jobs even before the completion of the three-month training period.
There is no way to collect data on those who got jobs after completing training. Similarly, 63% of those who are doing vocational studies are getting jobs.
What is the plan for setting up new public education institutions?
The process has been started for this. Online proposals have been sought. Currently, there are 290 Jan Shikshan Sansthans in the country, which are playing an important role in skill development.
After the proposals are received, a decision will be taken as per the need to open new institutions. Our special focus will be on rural areas.
Is any change being prepared in the Apprentice Act?
This is a law of 1961 and it is reviewed from time to time. Right now we are looking at how much the existing provisions can be implemented. Right now, institutions with more than 30 personnel will have to deploy 2.5 apprentices. We are getting it implemented by explaining it to the industry. We will see after that.
What steps have been taken towards modernization of ITI?
In this year’s budget, modernization of 1,000 ITI’s has been approved. Apart from this, Rs 200 crore has also been given for the modernization of 5 NSTI’s.
ITI trainers are trained in NSTI. We are teaching future skills in ITI like EV, AI etc. AI modules are also being taught in some Kendriya Vidyalayas and Navodaya Vidyalayas.
What is the role of your ministry in the new internship scheme?
The role will definitely be there but right now discussions are going on with various parties regarding its implementation and a blueprint of the plan is being prepared.
A large number of people from our country go abroad for employment; some of them are unskilled people too. What are you doing for them?
International Skill Centres are being set up to train such people. 30 centres are to be opened and two have already been opened.
In this, along with skill training, they are also made aware of the language and culture of the respective country so that they do not face any problem when they go abroad. Two centers are operating in Bhubaneswar and Kanpur.
By when will the courses for training Agniveers be ready?
Our courses for skill training of Agniveers of all three forces have been prepared and their implementation has also started.
When Agniveer completes his service, he will have a certificate of skill development.
The opposition alleges that the government is doing skill development but is not creating jobs?
Our skill development schemes are linked to employment. In the first three phases of the Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana, the training installment was released only after the youth received appointment letters.
Similarly, in the NDA government, the youth have been encouraged to start enterprises and the amount of Mudra loan has recently been increased to 20 lakhs. The youth population is very large, so there is definitely a challenge. I accept it.
Last question: What is your party’s stand on the Waqf Act Amendment Bill?
The bill has gone to the JPC. Let the parliamentary process proceed. Our party will also consider it.
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