Cabinet nod for extension of time for Udaan

New Delhi, Sep 20 (IANS) The government on Wednesday approved extending till December 31, 2018 the time period of Udaan scheme which provides job training to the youth in Jammu and Kashmir.

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA), chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, cleared the extension without any modification and cost escalation.

The Union Home Ministry had proposed the extension of the period of Udaan, a national integration scheme initially set up till 2016-17 with the goal to mainstream Jammu and Kashmir youth with the rest of the country.

Udaan not only provides skill enhancement and job opportunity but also connects bright youths from Jammu and Kashmir with the country's vibrant corporate sector, a Ministry statement said.

It provides exposure to the youth of Jammu and Kashmir to the best of corporate India and corporate India to the rich talent pool available in the state, it added.

"So far, 109 leading corporates have partnered with National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) under Udaan with a commitment to train youth from the state covering organised retail, banking, financial services, IT, ITES, infrastructure, hospitality and more," it said.

So far, 34,587 candidates have been selected of whom 31,903 have joined, 22,237 have completed the training, 7,649 are undergoing training and 14,694 have been offered jobs, the statement said.

In spite of four months of unrest, the scheme has gained a good momentum and pace of implementation has been the best during 2016-17 since its inception, it said.

More than 12,000 candidates had joined training and nearly 10,000 were offered jobs while 140 mega selection drives were held so far covering all districts of the state.