Thursday, 04 May 2023 | PNS | DEHRADUN
State cabinet approves special training scheme for overseas employability of local youth
The State government has decided to set up a State Institute for Empowering and Transforming Uttarakhand (SETU). Set up on the lines of the NITI Aayog in the centre, the SETU would replace the State Planning Commission (SPC). A decision in this regard was taken in the meeting of the State cabinet held at the secretariat on Wednesday. Informing about the decision, the chief secretary SS Sandhu told the media persons that the union government has directed the States to set up SETU which would phase out the planning commissions which have become redundant. Giving details of the SETU, secretary planning, R Meenakshi Sundaram said that the chief minister would be the chairman of the body while the planning minister or any other minister nominated by the CM would be the deputy chairman of the SETU.
The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the body would be selected from the open market like the CEO of the NITI Aayog is appointed. An officer of the rank of additional secretary in the Uttarakhand government would be the Additional CEO of the body. Sundaram said that six advisors would be selected for SETU from different domains of planning and implementation. The body would have three centres, the centre for economic and social planning, centre for public policy and good governance and centre for evidence based planning.
In another decision the State cabinet approved the new fodder policy. The secretary BVRC Purushottam said that the State faces a 33 per cent shortage of dry fodder. The policy plans to make the State self-sufficient in production of both dry and green fodder in the next five years. The cabinet also approved the proposal to revamp the Yatra Prashasan Committee which administers the Char Dham Yatra. The CS said that 11 permanent posts would be created in the body which will help in smooth operation of the committee which is chaired by Garhwal commissioner. In an attempt to encourage sale of local silica sand, the State cabinet approved the proposal to reduce the royalty on sand from existing Rs 300 per tonne to Rs 100 per tonne. The cabinet also approved the draft of Mukyamantri Koshal Unnayan and Vaishvik Rojgar Yojana under which training to local youngsters would be given for their employability in Japan and Germany. The State government would hire specialised institutes for the purpose who would give a guarantee of placement of 85 per cent of the trainees.
The CS said that discussion on encroachments on the government land was also held. It was decided that all the departments would maintain a record of its land and would appoint officers who would be held accountable in case some encroachment occurs on the land under their jurisdiction. The cabinet also decided to set up a separate fund for providing compensation to the victims of human animal conflict.
