New Delhi: Union Minister for Minority Affairs Shri Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi has said that short-term certificate courses of “GST Facilitator” and “Sanitary Supervisor” have been providing employment and employment opportunities to large number of youth belonging to minority communities. Chairing the General Body and Governing Body of Maulana Azad Education Foundation (MAEF) here today, Shri Naqvi said that a large number of youth from minority communities has been getting employment and employment opportunities through “GST Facilitator” course. He added that they are helping small, medium enterprises and also big business groups. Similarly, “Sanitary Supervisors are getting jobs in different sanitation projects across the country. Lakhs of toilets, cleanliness centres, health centres are being constructed under “Swachh Bharat Abhiyan” and these “Sanitary Supervisors” are also strengthening the cleanliness campaign”, Shri Naqvi said.
The Minister said that the effective mission of educational empowerment and skill development of the minority communities is fulfilling the commitment of the Government led by the Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, to the “Development with Dignity” of minorities.
Shri Naqvi pointed out that the Minority Affairs Ministry is spending more than 65 per cent of its total budget on the schemes aimed at educational empowerment and skill development of the youth belonging to the minority communities. He particularly mentioned various scholarship schemes, schemes for financial assistance for competitive exams, “Begum Hazrat Mahal Girls Scholarship has proved to be an important step towards the educational empowerment of minority communities. More than 1.5 crore students have been given various scholarships by the Ministry of Minority Affairs during the last 3 years. More than 3 lakh applications have been received for “Begum Hazrat Mahal Girls Scholarship”, the Minister said.
Shri Naqvi highlighted that during the last 3 years, under the Multi-Sectoral Development Programme, facilities such as 4, 377 health centres, 37, 068 Anganwadi centres, 10, 649 drinking water facilities, 32, 000 additional class rooms, 1, 817 school buildings, 15 degree colleges, 169 ITIs, 48 polytechnics, 248 multi-purpose community centres “Sadbhav Mandap”, 1064 hostels and 27 residential schools have been constructed in minority-dominated areas. “One hundred “Gharib Nawaz Skill Development Centres” are being set up across the country”, he said.
The Minister stated that employment and employment opportunities have been provided to about 50 lakh youths of minority communities through “Hunar Haat” and other skill development schemes. In the meeting, Shri Naqvi particularly emphasised that all the schemes should be effectively implemented at the ground level, so that the benefits of all these schemes reach to every needy person of the society. The Minister added that he himself has been monitoring all the educational empowerment and skill development programmes. “Any negligence in implementation of these schemes will not be tolerated”, he added.
Today’s meeting reviewed the various schemes being run by the Foundation for educational and skill development of minorities. The meeting was attended by Secretary of the Maulana Azad Education Foundation, Members of the Foundation and other officials.
