JAMMU: Giving a major boost to youth employment, Secretary, Rural Development Department (RDD) & Panchayati Raj, Mohammad Aijaz Asad today inaugurated ‘Kaushal Parv 2025’, an IEC-cum-placement drive under the Himayat–Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Grameen Kaushalya Yojana (DDU-GKY).
The placement drive turned into a significant recruitment platform with 17 reputed employers, like PepsiCo, Domino’s, Coca-Cola, Barbeque Nation, Burger King, Vardhman Textiles and Rubli Foods, offering a wide range of opportunities across sectors including retail, hospitality, textiles, food & beverages, IT-ITES, and surveillance services.
The event witnessed the participation of over 250 skilled youth mobilised by Project Implementing Agencies (PIAs) under Himayat, with several candidates receiving on-the-spot job offers.
In his address, the Secretary underscored that placements are the core milestone of the Himayat-DDU-GKY programme. “Job fairs like Kaushal Parv serve as a direct bridge between trained youth and employers, ensuring transparent, sustainable, and industry-driven employment outcomes,” he said.
Highlighting the Department’s focus on market-relevant skills, Aijaz Asad said that the twin initiatives, Kaushal Parv and Kaushal Rath, reflect the commitment to equip J&K’s youth with skills for sustainable livelihoods.
The Secretary also distributed offer letters to selected candidates on the occasion.
Addressing the gathering, COO, HMMU-JKRLM, Rajneesh Gupta said, “This is not merely a placement drive; it is a platform where skills meet opportunities and dreams take their next step forward. Each placement secured today is not just about a job but about dignity, courage, and empowerment.”
The event concluded with Secretary flagging off of ‘Kaushal Rath’, a mobile outreach vehicle that will travel block-to-block for 20 days, disseminating recorded messages, distributing pamphlets, and mobilising rural youth for skill training and placements—taking the scheme’s benefits to last-mile villages.
Pertinently, Himayat, the J&K chapter of the Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Grameen Kaushalya Yojana (DDU-GKY), is a flagship placement-linked skill development programme of the Ministry of Rural Development, Government of India.
