Jammu : Division Bench of State High Court comprising Chief Justice Gita Mittal and Justice Tashi Rabstan has treated news item published in Daily Excelsior under caption “Speed up Skill Dev training of youth under Himayat Scheme: Secy RDD” as Public Interest Litigation.
Division Bench has observed, “a report of the Daily Excelsior under caption ‘Speed up skill Dev training of youth under Himayat’ Scheme: Secy RDD” refers to the lack of skill development and employment opportunities to the youth of the State”, adding “the report further refers to the Himayat Scheme for providing skill development training and employment to the youth being undertaken by the Department of Rural Development and Panchayati Raj of the State Government”.
“As per the newspaper report, the programme has to be worked through Programme Implementing Agencies (PIAs) and a target of providing skill developments and employment opportunities to over 1.24 lakh candidates has to be undertaken from across the State within a period of three years”, the DB said, adding “it needs to be borne in mind that such skilling and employment opportunities are necessary not only in the rural areas but also in urban boundaries of the towns and cities of the State. It is also significant that lack of such opportunities has created huge problems for the youth in the State”.
DB further said, “the State Legal Services Authorities are enjoined under the provisions of Legal Services Authority Act to ensure publicity and working of the all State Social Welfare Schemes”, adding “judicial notice can be taken of the fact that in some of the States, the police authorities have joined hands with the other Government agencies to undertake programmes of skilling and providing employment opportunities to the youth”.
“In our view, intervention in the public interest in the matter is called for in view of almost complete absence of skilling and employment opportunities to the youth across the State”, the DB said while arraying State through Secretary Department of Rural Development and Panchayati Raj, Director General of Police, Secretary Youth Services and Sports and Members Secretary Legal Aid Services as respondents and issuing them notice to show cause as to why the writ petition be not admitted.
DB further directed the respondents to examine the working of this programme and also similar programmes which may have been successfully undertaken in other States and explore the possibilities of undertaking similar measures within the State and a report with regard to the working of the scheme(s) which is/are in place in the State as well as those proposed shall also be filed before the next date of hearing.
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