1000 applicants waiting for EDI nod for startups
Umar Mukhtar
SRINAGAR, Sep 24: Hundreds of unemployed youth across Jammu and Kashmir are not able to avail different self employment and entrepreneurship development schemes due to restrictions on training activities.
Sources in the government told Kashmir Despatch that over 1000 applications are already pending with Jammu and Kashmir Entrepreneurship Development Institute (JKEDI) for training activities for the last one year.
Even as the government has allowed class work for high school and higher secondary students along with degree colleges on a voluntary basis, there has been no word on resumption of training activities mandatory for aspirants of self employment and entrepreneurship development schemes.
“This has added to the frustration of those unemployed youth who in absence of government jobs intend to start their own small business ventures,” a senior officer in the department of employment told Kashmir Despatch.
He said that institutes like JKEDI and organisations like Khadi and Village Industries Board and Jammu and Kashmir Women Development Corporation are not able to start their training activities under different schemes for Employment generation.
“Issuing application forms to aspirants is the basic step to let the youth start their business journey but we aren’t allowed to do that. This is followed by training which also is not allowed as of now. Everyday, we receive queries from scores of unemployed youth but we feel helpless,” a senior official told Kashmir Despatch, wishing anonymity.
In addition hundreds of candidates who have already registered to avail benefits under different schemes are waiting for training activities for the last one year now in JKEDI.
“We are being told that training is not allowed due to COVID-19. But when the entire lockdown has been lifted and businesses have resumed what is fun of keeping our training on hold. We want to do small businesses to earn our livelihood but no one cares,” a group of aspirants registered with JKEDI told Kashmir Despatch.
JKEDI has the infrastructure to conduct training activities in strict compliance of the COVID-19 guidelines but the administration is yet to take any decision to start training programs for the unemployed youth of Jammu and Kashmir.
When contacted Executive Director JKEDI G.M Dar told Kashmir Despatch that EDI has started some training programs a few days ago while adhering strictly to the COVID protocol.
“After going through certain modifications, we have started attending to the applicant and have commenced various training programms under Himayat scheme, Youth startup loan scheme, Seed capital scheme, NMDFC, Term loan, Education loan schemes while maintaining social distancing,” he informed Kashmir Despatch.
