Srinagar: Based on exceptional accomplishments over the previous two years, Jammu and Kashmir's "Mission Youth" earned a spot in the top civil services awards.

On the occasion of Civil Services Day, which was held in New Delhi last week, Prime Minister Narendra Modi presented the coveted Prime Minister's Award for Excellence in Public Administration to J-K Chief Secretary Dr. Arun Kumar Mehta. He was joined by Chief Executive Officer of Mission Youth Dr. Shahid Iqbal Choudhary.

The Empowered Committee, which was led by Cabinet Secretary Rajiv Gauba, chose J-K, also known as "Mission Youth," to receive the distinction. J-K met the requirements for a multi-stage review and selection procedure that was conducted over the previous six months.

The  J-K 'Mission Youth' won the Innovation (State) category out of over 600 nominations from all the States and Union Territories. "It was selected for innovations leading to the empowerment of youth in J-K which included schemes in education, skilling, coaching, volunteerism and effective use of technology for very transparent and effective service delivery," source said. Nearly 5 lakh young people were employed during the last two years, and more than 61,000 youth have benefited from initiatives.

The government's signature programme, "Mission Youth," has completely changed the lives of young people in Jammu and Kashmir since Article 370, a temporary constitutional clause, was repealed.

Through methodical interventions for youth engagement and outreach under six domains, including livelihood generation, education/skill development, financial assistance, counseling/theory, sports and recreation, it claimed that "Mission Youth" had been successful in transforming J-K youth into ambassadors of innovation, peace, and development.

The concept of "Mission Youth" was established after the Centre announced its plan to revoke J-K's special status and divide it into two Union Territories on 5 August 2019, and J-K Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha put it into practise.

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