KL Newsdesk
In the EDI lawns in Pampore on Wednesday, it was a blushing Omar Abdullah intermittently breaking in saffron smiles. As the young girls and a few boys started revealing their best kept secrets that they are “big fans” of J&K Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, it made him uneasy, minute after minute. Before hundreds of boys and girls, he would smile and make attempts to hide it.
“I never knew that I will be able to speak at such a gathering in which Chief Minister Omar Abdullah would be present,” said a Mehjoor Nagar young lady. “Let me tell you, I am a big fan of Omar Abdullah.” Another young girl praised the “always smiling Omar” who is “very confidant” whenever he speaks on TV and otherwise. Yet another girl said how Omar’s presence made her day. “There is no comparison between Omar and Salman Khan (actor),” she said.
Even a young boy from Baramulla said Omar Abdullah has remained and will remain “my hero” because “I love his sharp responses on TV”. The boy said that he has rarely seen picture perfect Omar “distressed” especially on the TV screen.
These boys and girls were part of the 1423 youth who were given job letters under Rural Development Ministry operated scheme Himayat. Of them 823 will work within the state’s private sector and the rest will be deployed in neighboring states in north India. The scheme identifies school drop-outs from across the state, trains them for various skills in diverse sectors and deploys them in the market. They are being hand-holded for two years, imparted essential basic computer knowledge and given Rs 2000 per month for six months as post placement allowance.
At the end of it, another young girl hurled tons of praise for Omar and ended her speech by making a wish that she wants to shake hands with the Chief Minister, a wish that a blushing Omar instantly granted before the flushing cameras, with central minister Jairam Ramesh and other ministers offers a clapping background.
“To be honest with,” Omar responded in his brief speech. “I never knew that I have so many fans in Kashmir.” Omar was all parise for the boys and girls who exhibited impressive confidence while speaking from the podium in front of hundreds of people. “Had I been at your place, I might not have come to the dice and if I would come I may not have been able to utter a single word,” Omar said. “I know big politician who got the mike and then said I have nothing to say.” This was a veiled reference to the failure of PDP president in Lok Sabha in 2008 when she failed to make a speech and Omar utilized the same platform to create a major impression in India.
“We do not lack talent, confidence, or ability,” Omar said amid clapping from the audience. “It is the lack of opportunity that is the problem.” Omar said if the Kashmiri youth get the opportunity, “they have the capacity of plucking stars from the skies.”
Omar said he was initially not very optimistic about Himayat because attrition rate was too high. “As more and more people are getting trained, the success rate is improving but there are grey areas that would require intervention,” Omar said. He suggested that the boys and girls who would retain the jobs they are deployed at for two years will get a laptop as a gift and this gift would jointly funded by the state and the central government, a suggestion that Jairam Ramesh readily agreed.
Jairam was in the state to offer the job letters to the second batch trained under Himayat. So far a total of 2431 youth were trained in two batches. While the first batch had forty percent retention, the second batch had 75 percent retention. The minister visited Sopore where a training centre was opened in Badipore village with 85 boys and girls on rolls.
