18-05-2025
- General
- New Indian Express
Creating greener pastures at home
JHARKHAND: As the Deputy Director in the Palamau Tiger Reserve (PTR), Indian Forest Service (IFS) officer Prajesh Kant Jena has taken it upon himself to check the migration of youth to other states in search of livelihood.
He has come up with an initiative, Hunar se Rozgar, under which youngsters living in local villages are undergoing free 45-day training programmes at two centres within the reserve – Batla and Mandal – to develop proficiency in computer operations, mechanics and various other domains. Girls, for example, are receiving training in sewing, knitting and embroidery.
Ask Jena what the objective of this initiative is, and he explains, 'It's meant to boost the confidence of youngsters living in remote jungles of PTR by developing certain employable skill in them, as most of them are engaged in daily wage labour despite being educated.'
But how did this idea crop up? 'I have noticed through my time here in this reserve that most youngsters living in these jungles either get engaged in traditional forest-related practices or migrate to other states in search of livelihood.'
That's what prompted him to do something that could arrest the trend of youth migration to other states hundreds of kilometres from home. Besides training, the youngsters are also provided with employment opportunities with the help of the NGO partners as part of the initiative.
