Bijay Charak
Early Times Report
Jammu, Mar 27: Notwithstanding the fact that the Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been taking assertive steps for up-liftment of minorities, the Government Polytechnic College Bikram Chowk has reportedly closed down a skill development programme for minorities, being run by Union government.
Sources informed Early Times that Union government in year 2000 had launched a skill development scheme (Community Development through Polytechnic CDTP) for minorities.
Under the scheme free of cost, six month training was imparted among the students from minority communities including Schedule castes (SC), Schedule tribes (ST), other backward classes (OBC) and specially abled students in various colleges including Bikram Chowk.
The students were trained in various trades including Plumber, Motor mechanic, Electrician beside others and in Bikram Chowk polytechnic college and in August 2015, the last batch comprised of 222 minority students, who were enrolled in Bikrram Chowk polytechnic college but after the lapse of seven months the course is yet to be started.The course has been proved very valuable for these students and helped to overcome the economic deprivation of minorities.
According to sources, the Union government programme has reportedly closed down by administration of Bikram Chowk, on the plea of paucity of funds.
"Instead of exploring other options for managing finance, still funds are sanctioned by Union government, the coordinator of scheme in Bikram Chowk college has opted to close down the scheme and even the instructors were also asked verbally not to come in college for the month of January 2016", sources said.
Instructors of Skill Development Scheme working at Bikram Chowk college Gurdyal, RomeshChander and Vinod Kumar and others have appealed Governor NN Vohra to direct the college authorities for continue the scheme so that the minority students would get benefit of the scheme and the pending salary of instructors for the last one year, should also be released.
The instructors further said that for the last fifteen years they have been working at Polytechnic college but in one go, they were thrown out by administration, which was very unfortunate.
A former Coordinator of Scheme in Bikram Chowk Polytechnic College informed Early Times that earlier also there was paucity of funds for the scheme as delay in release of funds was routine and it was the responsibility of Principal/Coordinator to manage the funds and continue the scheme and whenever funds would be released, every liability was cleared.
"Under a well-planned conspiracy, some of the officials hostile to the minority classes adopt every tactics to deprive minority communities from getting any benefit of various schemes", an advocate of High Court Gian Chand said, adding that the Coordinator of the Polytechnic College might be unable to understand the discrimination meted out to minorities for centuries together, so without application of mind over the spirit of schemes, order of its closure have been passed. |
