Advisor to Lieutenant Governor, Farooq Khan today underscored the need for coming up with alternative activities under J&K Women Development Corporation (JKWDC) so that sufficient and productive employment opportunities for women would be created across Jammu and Kashmir."The Corporation should come up with ideas for alternate activities so that ample and sufficient employment would be created for J&K women in order to enable them to live a dignified and honorable life,” Advisor Khan said.The Advisor, who is also the Chairman of Jammu and Kashmir Women's Development Corporation (JKWDC), was speaking at the 25th Board of Directors meeting of the Corporation here today.Principal Secretary Social Welfare Department, Shailendra Kumar; Director General Planning Development and Monitoring Department,Director General Planning Development and Monitoring Department, Shahzada Bilal Ahmad; Managing Director, JKWDC, Naheed Soz; Director General Budget, MY Itoo and other members of BoD were present at the meeting.While Chairman-cum-Managing Director, National Handicapped Finance Development Corporation (NHFDC), New Delhi; Chairman-cum-Managing Director, National Minorities Development and Finance Corporation (NMDFC), Delhi and Managing Director, National Backward Classes Finance & Development Corporation (NBCFDC), New Delhi participated in the meeting through Video Conference. On the onset, MD WDC informed that the Corporation is implementing a number of Developmental Schemes for socio-economic uplift of women with special focus on those of underprivileged segments and also for the qualified women entrepreneurs.She also briefed the meeting about the details of the schemes being implemented by the Corporation for the economic empowerment of socially and economically backward women.
The Board was apprised that WDC has disbursed an amount of Rs 216.73 crore and covered 17,294 beneficiaries under various Centrally and State Sponsored Schemes.It was given out that the Corporation as a Vocational Training Provider imparted training to 7337 beneficiaries under various trades and disbursed an amount of Rs 6.96 crore in favour of the SHGs framed during training under Micro Finance Schemes of Govt of India and in order to provide market to such beneficiaries/SHGs .The WDC has conducted 43 exhibitions at J&K and National level and has also participated in many international exhibitions, the meeting was told.The Board was also informed that during COVID-19 pandemic WDC supplied 2, 42,105 masks to various District Administrations of J&K against the supply orders.The Board meeting discussed activities, achievement, Action Taken Reports and approval and adoption of accounts-cum-draft balance sheet for the year 2019-20.Various agenda points were discussed, including action taken report on the decisions of 24th Board meeting, adoption and approval of accounts for the year 2018-19, enhancement of wages in respect of Consolidated Field Supervisors, branding of WDC products, construction of WDC office at Jammu, filling up of vacant posts and many others.After detailed deliberations, several important decisions were taken by the Board for better management of the affairs of the Corporation.Speaking on the occasion, Advisor Khan lauded role of the Corporation towards promoting interests of women folk in the J&K and hoped that more socio-economically backward women would be aided under income generating schemes and programmes.He emphasised upon the Corporation to give priority to remote and uncovered areas so that women living there can be benefited by the schemes of the WDC.On the occasion, the Advisor and other Board of Directors also released a catalogue prepared by WDC depicting the end products prepared by the beneficiaries and SHG associated with the WDC.