Srinagar : Education Minister Naeem Akhter today called on the college administrations to turn their educational institutions into start-up launch pads by counseling, guiding and training students in market-relevant skills.
The Education Minister said this while chairing a meeting to review arrangements for the forthcoming exams and functioning of the government colleges in Kashmir. The meeting was attended by principals of government colleges and officials of the Higher Education Department.
The minister, according to a spokesman, said the colleges needed to reinvent themselves keeping in view the challenges faced by society and needs of the students. He said the government had already identified a number of trades wherein students were being trained so that they become job creators when they leave their college.
He said herbal gardens, boutique technology, handicrafts training, papier mache, interior decoration, food technology were some of the trades which could be introduced in colleges. “It is inspiring to note that the institutions like Government College for Women, Nawakadal, and Government College for Women, Gandhi Nagar, Jammu, are successfully running skill development courses,” he said.
On the occasion, Naeem Akhter was told that a number of students had already benefited from the programmes in the colleges and some of them had even attained national fame.
He asked the college principals to identify the locally relevant trades and start the relevant courses in their colleges at the earliest. He said the colleges should not only impart education to students but also produce entrepreneurs. He promised all help from the government in this regard.
The minister directed the officials to construct a fish pond at Government Degree College, Bemina, for the training purposes. He also reviewed an e-literacy programme being implemented in the colleges. He said it was imperative that every student and employee becomes e-literate so as they could progress.
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