Skilled labour can address problem of unemployment: Deputy chief minister of Meghalaya

SHILLONG: Meghalaya Deputy chief minister Rowell Lyngdoh stressed on the need to produce more skilled labour to tackle the ever-increasing unemployment problem in the northeast. "Though employment opportunities are available in industries and commercial enterprises, the problem of unemployment persists in the northeast. This is because we lack in the production of skilled labour suitable to be employed in industries and commercial enterprises," Lyngdoh said at the ongoing North-East Career and Skills Expo here.

The expo was organized by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) in collaboration with Union ministry of development of northeastern region (Doner) and the Meghalaya government.

Citing the unavailability of vocational schools and institutions in imparting training to the youth as another drawback in the employment process, Lyngdoh said, "Despite the will and the number, the people of the region are crippled of professional skills and are, therefore, denied employment opportunities."

He, however, said the state labour department and other public and private organizations have launched various short courses and training programme for the youth to address the lacunae and are contemplating introduction of various skill development programmes.

Meanwhile, thousands of students from the state have been thronging the stalls at the expo held at the All Saints' Cathedral Hall in a bid to gather information and for career counselling. The School of Broadcasting & Communication, Skill Pro Foundation, Flying Cats & Global Retail School, National Institute of Fashion Technology, National Institute of Design, Apollo MedSkills Limited and others are participating in the expo, which is scheduled to conclude on Friday.

"Skill building and youth empowerment is one of the key intervention areas of CII in the northeast. Following the overwhelming response at the first CII North East Skills Conclave, organized in Guwahati in January this year, CII is organizing a series of career and skills expos in the region," one of the organizers said.

"The broad objective is to generate awareness on new career opportunities and the available skill sets required to prepare students of Meghalaya for the upcoming job market," he added.