M A I N   N E W S

Centre clears appointment of 24,000 teachers in J&K

Srinagar, October 11
The Centre has cleared appointment of 24,000 teachers in Jammu and Kashmir to tide over the growing unemployment in the state.

Reviewing the implementation of the Prime Minister’s packages to the state at a meeting here today, the Chief Minister, Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, said of these, 14,000 posts would be filled under the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan and 8,000 posts as third teacher in primary schools.

He said the state government had taken up with the Centre creation of 2,000 more posts for primary schools as third teacher and 3,000 posts of Physical Education teachers.

The Chief Minister said 361 salaried jobs were being given by the Railways and 446 in post offices under the Prime Minister’s employment package. The government had also cleared setting up of 1,500 anganwari centres in the first instance providing employment to 3,000 women, he added.

He announced setting up of a high level monitoring group under the chairmanship of the Chief Secretary for expeditious implementation of the Prime Minister’s packages for the state.

Computer education would be introduced in schools to upgrade the level of education in government institutions, he said and asked the Information Technology Department to evolve a policy for outsourcing computer education by involving private sector to ensure quick and better results.

Under the package, the Chief Minister said the Craft Development Institute and the Design Development-cum-Common Facility Centre were being set up at a cost of Rs 14.50 crore which would help in improving carpet making techniques and as also producing world-class woodcarving, and papier machie products.

A raw material bank would also be set up to make available silk and wool for manufacturing carpets.

The State Industrial Corporation would make available Rs 2.50 crore as a corpus for setting up the bank, he said.

He said the Centre was also issuing Artisan Credit Cards to the artisans of the state on the pattern of Kisan Credit Card for facilitating hassle-free loan facilities to them.

The Chief Minister said two clusters would be set up for manufacturing cricket bat and furniture at Anantnag and Srinagar, respectively. In addition, 2,000 youth were being trained in computers, 1,200 in Kashmir division and 800 in Jammu, under the package.

The targets under various wage employment schemes have also been increased for creating more job opportunities, the Chief Minister said. —PTI