The Vice President of India, M. Venkaiah Naidu has said that skill development should become a national mission. He lauded the valor, courage and commitment of Wing Commander, Abhinandan Varthaman and said that he has made the nation proud with his bravery and professional integrity in the face of adversity. He called Shri Abhinanadan and his family who have been serving the nation, a shining example in the service of the nation as he asked the younger generation to draw inspiration from him.Addressing the gathering after laying foundation stone for the construction of Kaushal Bhawan, here today, Shri Naidu stressed up on the need to work as team India to build a stronger India, a more developed India, an India that was capable of defending itself against hostile forces and disruptive designs.The world and especially South East Asia has numerous problems like poverty, illiteracy, unemployment and low employable skills. We should wage a war against these, he added.Calling youth the agents for transformation, the Vice President asked the youth to upgrade their skill sets by using the opportunities made available by the government such as Skill India, Digital India, Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojna and others that were aimed at empowering youth to match the needs of the 21st century job market.
The Vice President called up on the Private sector to step in supporting government’s efforts skill the youth of India, especially the ones living in rural areas.Expressing concern over the rising urban-rural divide, Shri Naidu wanted united efforts by all agencies including the private sector to create healthcare, rural employment, skill training facilities at rural areas at par with the urban areas.Quoting Maharma Gandhi’s Nai Talim, the Vice President stressed that youth and children should not just be trained to acquire skills but should be taught to respect human labor and social harmony and tolerance. One must learn to respect every job, he added.Shri Naidu said that training the youth and children on rural crafts by way of vocational training and empowering them to stand on their own should pave the way for Gram Swaraj and create the possibility of large-scale self-employment in rural and urban areas.The Minister of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship and Petroleum & Natural Gas, Shri Dharmendra Pradhan, the Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha, Smt. Meenakashi Lekhi and other dignitaries were present on the occasion.