Udaan scheme getting very good response in J&K: Anant Kumar Hegde
Kolkata, June 20: The 'Udaan' programme to provide skills training to the educated unemployed youth in Jammu and Kashmir, has received a "very good response" from the people there, said Union Minister of State for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship Anant Kumar Hegde on Wednesday.
"A scheme named Udaan is going on in Kashmir. The state government, Home Ministry and our Ministry are jointly working towards implementing it.
"So far it has received a very good response from the people there," Hegde told the reporters in the sidelines of a session on 'Human Resources Development for Socio-Economic Development' here.
Asked about his Ministry's initiative to upskill the unemployed youth of Kashmir, who are getting involved in criminal activities like throwing stones at the Indian armed forces personnel, the minister said the Udaan scheme is uniquely designed for the youths of Kashmir to bring them back to the mainstream.
"It is a unique scheme for Jammu and Kashmir. It is primarily for the youths and also the people who surrender to the administration there. They are given skills training for one or two years during their rehabilitation programme," Hedge added.
However, the minister refused to comment on the current situation in Jammu and Kashmir after the Bharatiya Janata Party pulled out of ruling coalition with the Peoples Democratic Party on Tuesday, stating it can be best answered by the Home Ministry.
Udaan is a special industry initiative for Jammu and Kashmir in the nature of partnership between the corporates of India and Home Affairs Ministry and implemented by National Skill Development Corp.
It aims to cover 40,000 youth over a period of five years and Rs 750 crore has been earmarked for its implementation.
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AAP accuses Chadha of indulging in 'soft PR', dodging key issues in Parliament
New Delhi (PTI): The AAP on Friday hit back at party MP Raghav Chadha, accusing him of shying away from raising issues against the Centre in Parliament and instead engaging in "soft PR".
Delhi Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) President Saurabh Bharadwaj alleged that Chadha failed to toe the party's line on several matters in Parliament and did not join opposition walkouts on key issues.
"We all are soldiers of Arvind Kejriwal, the Centre doesn't care about soft PR or talking about samosas at airport canteens when bigger issues are at stake," Bharadwaj said in a video posted on X.
"Whenever the Opposition staged a walkout in Parliament, you (Chadha) did not participate. You did not raise issues concerning Punjab, from where you are elected, and you hid in a foreign country when former Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal was arrested," he added.
AAP national media in-charge Anurag Dhanda also criticised Chadha, questioning whether someone who "fears" Prime Minister Narendra Modi can fight for the country.
"In West Bengal, the right to vote is being snatched away. When a proposal against the CEC came up in the House, you (Chadha) refused to sign it," Dhanda said on X.
"In Parliament, we get limited time to speak, and it can be used either to fight for the nation or discuss trivial matters like cheaper samosas at airport canteens," Dhanda said, adding that Chadha has been hesitant to speak on "real issues" for the last few years.
The remarks came after Chadha earlier in the day said he was "silenced, not defeated", a day after being removed as the AAP's deputy leader in Rajya Sabha.
