Government signs pact with Dubai firm for overseas placement of youth

Shimla, August 31

The state government today signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Dubai-based EFS Facilities Services Group Ltd for the overseas placement of the local youth.

The agreement was signed by Deputy Director, Employment, Sandeep Thakur on the behalf of the government and Chief Executive Officer Tariq Chauhan on the behalf of EFS Facilities Services Group Ltd in the presence of Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu.

Sukhu handed over appointment letters of overseas placement to Rajat Kumar, Sunil Kumar, Jaspreet Singh, Abhinav Sharma of Una district and Dinesh of Hamirpur district. The formalities for obtaining visa for these students was underway and they were likely to join their jobs at Neom city next month.

The Chief Minister said that the state Employment Department would now take up the process for overseas placement throughout the state through recruitment agencies. “The Labour and Employment Department should evolve a tracking and tracing mechanism to ensure the well-being of the youth working abroad. The Mukhya Mantri Sewa Sanklap Helpline 1100 would be associated with this task,” he added.

He said that the government would make necessary amendments to technical courses to ensure better employment avenues for the youth. “The state government is also exploring the possibility of more overseas employment opportunities and for this purpose, the department will coordinate with the Counsel General of India office in Dubai,” he added.

Sukhu said that as part of its broader India hiring strategy, the EFS planned to meet 15 per cent to 20 per cent of its staff requirement from Himachal. “This will help almost 1,000 youth every year, particularly in hospitality, technical services, housekeeping, food and beverage and office support sectors.

The Chief Minister said that the government was committed to providing maximum possible employment and self-employment opportunities to the youth. “Over 31,000 posts have been created in the government sector alone in about 20 months. The Rs 680 crore Rajiv Gandhi Start-up Scheme has been implemented to motivate the youth to start self-employment ventures,” he added.

Tariq Chauhan, Chief Executive Officer, EFS Facilities Services Group Ltd, Dubai, said that the company was registered with the Indian Ministry of External Affairs. It was a global leader in integrated facility management, operating across 25 countries in the Middle East, Africa, South Asia and Europe. He added that the EFS was committed to a pilot project of recruiting at least 25 candidates from this region by the year-end. No recruitment fees would be charged from the candidates and complete protection from exploitation would be ensured by intermediaries, he said.

Industries Minister Harshwardhan Chauhan, Secretary, Labour and Employment, Priyanka Basu; Commissioner, Labour and Employment, Mansi Sahay Thakur were present on the occasion.