Punjab to help meritorious aspirants crack job exams

CHANDIGARH: To give a much-needed push to its flagship scheme ‘Ghar Ghar Rozgar’, the Punjab government has decided to set up coaching centres in each district for helping aspirants belonging to marginalized or economically weaker sections to crack competitive job exams conducted by state and central governments.

Though training will be imparted for jobs in both government and private sectors, special emphasis will be given to preparing youth for securing government jobs. The government has initiated the process by inviting expressions of interest to rope in agencies to operate these coaching centres.

As per the plan, each centre will run four batches of two hours each for six days of the week. Of the four batches, three will be dedicated to government coaching and one to training for private jobs. The empanelled training partner will have to impart training to at least 100 aspirants per day. The course will last two months.

The empanelled training partners will be required to prepare coaching and training material in both English and Punjabi languages. Before finalising content and aligning curriculum in line with exams, training partners will be needed to take feedback and expectations from industry. Training material will have to be approved by government.

As per norms, each training partner will have to employ at least two teachers per course with a minimum qualification of BEd in English and psychology. Training partners will be needed to regularly conduct mock tests and keep a record of the performance of each candidate.

Punjab Skill Development Mission director D K Tiwari said the move was aimed at providing a level-playing field to deserving candidates from marginalised sections. “Candidates who meet eligibility criteria for competitive examination will be provided free training. We want to give deserving job-seekers a better chance to succeed in competitive exams conducted by the state and central governments,” said Tiwari.

Performance clause

To ensure quality training, the government has incorporated a performance clause. The government will pay Rs 2 lakh per course to each training partner. In addition, if five candidates out of a batch of 50 secure government jobs, the training partner will be given Rs 2 lakh. However, if the number is less than five, a penalty of Rs 30,000 per candidate will be imposed. If placements are more than five, an incentive of Rs 25,000 per candidate will be given. For each private job, the centre will be provided Rs 8,000.

22 districts as 6 clusters

The government has divided the 22 districts of Punjab into six clusters — Patiala, Ferozepur, Faridkot, Ludhiana, Rupnagar and Gurdaspur. For convenience of aspirants, authorities have decided to allow them to undertake training at any cluster. Government will provide free space to elected agencies at district bureaus of employment and enterprise (DBEE) located in each district. In case of space constraints, deputy commissioner will allot separate halls within government premises.