Jammu and Kashmir National Conference Party President and Member of Parliament from Srinagar Dr. Farooq Abdullah on Saturday expressed concern over the plethora of challenges the youth are facing on account of declining employment opportunities in J&K. While lamenting over the burgeoning unemployment rate and shrinking avenues for educated youth both in public and private sector, Party President said, “It is entrepreneurship that will act as an antidote to current unemployment crisis, will inevitably provide limitless opportunities to our youth and will provide much needed boost to our ailing economy. Ours is a state which has numerous opportunities in agriculture, handicrafts, food processing, and other untapped resources in the service and hospitality sector,” adding, “Unfortunately most of the avenues haven’t been leveraged due to a number of reasons. At a time when entrepreneurship is much touted to provide employment to JK youth and boost the economy, young budding entrepreneurs continue to suffer due to lack of support from government and financial institutions,” he said. “Merely providing financial and infrastructural support to the budding entrepreneurs won’t suffice; measures for skill development are also needed. Therefore we ought to create an environment where in our academic institutes, entrepreneurship development centers, and District industrial centers work hand in hand under a strong and multifarious youth friendly policy framework,” he said while calling for an entrepreneur friendly taxation regime, speedy and single window clearance for all startups.Farooq, according to GNS said that there was a great deal of confusion festering the minds of the youth about starting their own ventures which needs to be allayed. “It can be achieved through counseling in schools, colleges and universities. Media too has a role to play in this regard,” he said. Meanwhile Party President inaugurated a popular franchisee of a food joint at Sangramal shopping Complex in Srinagar. On the occasion he congratulated the proprietor of the franchise Ashiq Rafiq Khan and wished him good luck. He was accompanied by the party's Additional General Secretary Dr Sheikh Mustafa Kamal. (GNS)