My dear fellow citizens, My warm greetings and best wishes to the youth and students of Sikkim. I hold you all as my own children and I wish the best for you. Today, I am going to share my views on certain issues which are pertinent to your welfare. You all are aware that education has been the priority of the State Government. We are doing our best to provide facilities and opportunities for students so that they can look forward to a more meaningful life, contribute to society and start earning a decent livelihood. Some of the initiatives that the State Government has taken are:- •Free education up to College level to ensure that students enjoy uninterrupted studies up to graduation. •Chief Minister’s Meritorious Scholarship for Class V students. Under this Scheme, children from underprivileged families are sent to the best public schools in the country. •Chief Minister’s Scholarship for Higher Education under which any student who secures admission in one of the top twenty Universities of the world is sponsored by the State Government. •Coaching for IAS & Allied Services/ Banking/ Defence etc. to provide a platform for our youth to compete in UPSC examinations at the national level. •Capacity Building inside and outside Sikkim to cater to the rising demand for skilled manpower in different sectors. •Livelihood Schools to impart skills to enable unemployed youth to start their own small and medium business enterprises. •Interest-free self-employment loans up to Rs. 10 lakh for to facilitate business ideas and entrepreneurship among the youth. •Simplified NOC procedures for unemployed youth. 50% of the licence fee has been waived for unemployed youth, and; •Simplified requirement for a guarantor of loans. The Government is trying to provide a bigger playing field as far as jobs are concerned. We are sending youths for coaching in preparing for qualifying in IAS and Allied Services, Banking, Defence, Civil Aviation Pilot and Services examinations. The Government has gone to the extent of rewarding parents of the successful candidates qualifying for appointment to IAS and allied Services at the rate of Rs.2.00 lakhs to the parent of the family and in the Defence, Banking, etc. services at the rate of Rs.1.50 lakh to the parent of the family. We have started Capacity Building Institute, Vocational Training Schools and Livelihood Schools with the aim of imparting skills to the youth that will make them employable. These institutions are channels through which you can enter the job sector as competitive and skilled candidates. In the end, nevertheless, it is in the hands of the youth to build their career and their lives. Our children mistake sitting for an interview for getting an appointment letter. However, there is a process through which candidates are selected for a position. First, one must pass in the written examination and then sit for the interview which carries 12.5% of the examination marks. Therefore, the marks obtained in the interview are counted as part of the written examination marks. Also every one has the right to sit for an examination. I also want you all to know a Government job is not the ultimate alternative for a career. There is a wide range of opportunities available as career options. We need all kinds of professions and careers to make the world go around. The talents of successful people like Bill Gates, Mother Teresa, Mukesh Ambani, Mark Zuckerberg, Stephen Hawking, Noam Chomsky and Mahatma Gandhi would have been a complete waste had they chosen a career that was not fit for them. We need innovative thinkers. We need brilliant scientists. We need passionate social workers. Our youth need to be far sighted in terms of their career and not think as far as the next certificate. But, in order to be successful, one must have a long-term vision of their goals. One must create a roadmap of what exact steps they will take after getting a Class Ten Passed or Class Twelve Passed Certificate, Graduate or Post Graduate Degree. Hundreds of students graduate each year without a clear idea of what they want to do next so parents must help their children to choose a career and not depend on the Government to do so for them. Parents have the biggest responsibility towards their children in helping them move towards their career goals. Thus, the biggest task at our hands is to discard the mindset that it is the Government’s responsibility to employ the youth. The Government’s responsibility remains only as far as to make employment opportunities available. Then, it is solely in the hands of the youth to take advantage of the opportunities created by the Government. We must also adapt what the 21st century asks of us and engage in professions that answer the needs of our world today. The teachers too have a big role in ensuring that our youth move forward in the right direction. The teaching community must help students inculcate a forward thinking attitude in terms of their academic and career goals. Teachers must treat each student as their own child and help them develop their unique talents. There are many different types of jobs in the Government - Central and State – in the joint sector or the private sector and accordingly appropriate subjects must be chosen for them. While students prepare themselves for a particular sector, teachers must aid the students in making the best choices possible. In the West education is very expensive as students are required to pay. The irony here is Government provides everything free. Parents, students and teachers need to think in a positive manner to utilise this priceless but meaningful incentives for getting better educated. Our youth also must learn from the youth of other States who go to Delhi for higher education where they work hard to prepare themselves for themselves for their careers by undergoing coaching, training, further coaching if needed, appearing for examinations, working and studying. To achieve success, there are many sacrifices to be made and hardships to overcome. But without sacrifice and labour, success will not be easy to come by. You must all prepare yourselves to work hard and work long to achieve success and the preparation must start today. This wonderful human life must not be wasted in unworthy pursuits. You must choose to do something that is meaningful, commands respect and helps move society forward. As you already know, the top priority of the Government is to provide quality education for you all. Our scheme that has been developed is to provide access to quality education and at the same time to infuse a spirit of healthy competition is the Chief Minister’s Meritorious Scholarship. This scholarship is intended to benefit children of Class V belonging to the lower class income group by providing better access and exposure to education in Public Schools. Another scheme is the Chief Minister’s Free Scholarship for Meritorious Students in higher education. This scholarship was launched to encourage students to dream big for higher education options by sponsoring students to in premiere Universities like Cambridge, UCLA, Harvard and Oxford if they gain admission in any one of them. To be eligible for this scholarship, a student must gain admission through competitive entrance examination into any one of the top twenty universities in the world. Two students have been awarded the scholarship since the launch of the programme. The scheme of interest-free self-employment loans up to Rs.10 lakhs, which is applicable to the entire State of Sikkim, are given to facilitate business ideas and entrepreneurship among the unemployed youth. Under this scheme the maximum limit of loan for Graduates (and equivalent) Post Graduates is Rs.1.00 lakh. For Class X passed and above the limit is Rs.50,000/-. The State Government has also launched the Chief Minister’s Self Employment Scheme under which loans up to Rs.10.00 lakhs are given to educated unemployed youth. The aim of this scheme is to encourage youth to start business enterprises. Different financial institutions also provide loans and I urge you to take advantage of these institutions. We have also decided to provide Laptops to students of Class XI, XII and to college students so that the availability of technology bolsters their academic performance. We decided to give laptops this year so that they will aid you in your learning process by making it easier to access and accumulate information. Rising unemployment, a global phenomenon, is also a cause of concern in Sikkim. However, unemployment in Sikkim is not due to absence of work. The opportunities are available but our people need to acquire employable skills to be absorbed into the work force. The youth unemployment in the European Union is as high as 13 percent and the member nations are consolidating their budget to bail out crippling economies and to address record unemployment among the youth between the age of 15-24. Yet, our goal of creating a State of highly skilled youth, who are not only knowledgeable but are passionate about their work, cannot be reached without the support of all those who have responsibility towards the youth of Sikkim. Thus, I sincerely appeal to all parents, teachers, students and youth alike to come forward and work together in earnestness to achieve this goal. I appeal to all parents to guide their children at home and in the community and to the teachers to help the students discover their strengths in School and University. Most important of all, I urge students and the youth of Sikkim to work hard NOW as this is the time to put in effort so that success can be yours in the future. Let us all join our efforts to build a wonderful future for the youth of Sikkim. Pawan Chamling
Posted on: Thu, 22 Aug 2013 09:59:55 +0000
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