Degree alone not enough to get a job, skills even more important: Fadnavis

New Delhi: Maharashtra Government is working to open up international job opportunities for the state's youth to meet the growing demand for skilled workforce in over 28 countries, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said on Tuesday.

Speaking at the virtual launch of the 'Pandit Deendayal Upadhyay Maha Rozgar Melava' held across all districts of Konkan and Nashik divisions, Fadnavis stressed that education must be seamlessly integrated with skill development and job-oriented training to boost youth employability.

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"Merely obtaining a degree is not enough. Continuous upskilling and acquiring expertise in emerging domains like artificial intelligence, semiconductors, and quantum computing is the need of the hour," the Chief Minister said.

The employment drive was launched online in the presence of Fadnavis at the Smt Nathibai Damodar Thackersey (SNDT) Women's University in Mumbai.

Fadnavis said the employment drive was being organised under the 'Seva Sankalp Abhiyan' to mark 25 years of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in continuous executive public office.

He expressed hope that the initiative would provide employment and self-employment opportunities to a large number of youth from Konkan and Nashik divisions.

Education, training and employment were the three essential pillars for achieving the vision of a developed India by 2047, the CM insisted, adding employment fairs were acting as a link between industries seeking skilled manpower and young people looking for jobs.

Around 65 percent of India's population comprises working-age youth. Youngsters needed to continuously acquire new skills in response to changing technologies, he opined.

The state government was working to provide young people with employment opportunities at the international level by linking education with skill development, training and jobs, the CM maintained.

Fadnavis said more than 28 countries around the world were facing a strong demand for manpower and advised the young people to continuously upgrade their skills.

Speaking on the occasion, Skill Development, Employment, Entrepreneurship and Innovation Minister Mangal Prabhat Lodha said employment fairs were being organised simultaneously at 418 locations across Konkan and Nashik divisions, with more than one lakh youth registered for the initiative.

He said the drive was not restricted to ITI (Industrial Training Institute) students and that at least three smaller employment fairs were being organised in every taluka for youth from different educational and professional backgrounds.

Seven-day free pre-employment training was also being provided to candidates, with 61,000 young men and women having undergone the training so far, Lodha said.

The government would continue its efforts until at least 70 per cent of participating youth were connected with employment or self-employment opportunities, he maintained.

Higher and Technical Education Minister Chandrakant Patil said his department was working with the Skill Development Department to create employment opportunities for graduates.

The initiative included training in areas such as interview preparation, personality development, soft skills, communication and management, he stated.

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Marketing Minister Jaykumar Rawal said the government was preparing youth for employment opportunities abroad by providing them with the required language and skill training.

He said Maharashtra has emerged as a major investment destination in Asia and the state has positioned itself as the country's start-up capital.

More than 1,500 employers and over one lakh job-seeking youth have registered for the employment drive across 12 districts of the two divisions, while participating employers have reported demand for more than 25,000 vacancies, officials said.

Candidates and employers were being coordinated through educational institutions, colleges, government industrial training institutes, local administrations and other organisations, they said.

A special employment fair for women was also organised at SNDT Women's University to encourage women's participation in the workforce. As many as 36 employers participated in the initiative, while stalls providing information on government schemes promoting self-employment were also set up, an official release said.

Fadnavis handed over appointment letters to Sahida Paramanik, appointed by Kreva Capital Services Pvt Ltd, Belapur (Navi Mumbai), and Kanti Shambhu Chavan, appointed by the company's Kurla office in Mumbai, an official release issued after the event said.

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