KSRTC bus services to be aligned with college timings: Harish Gowda

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MLA K. Harish Gowda watering a sapling during an awareness programme on Yuvanidhi and Shakti schemes, at the Maharani Women’s Commerce and Management College in Mysuru on Monday. | Photo Credit: M.A. Sriram

MLA for Chamaraja K. Harish Gowda on Monday said steps would be taken to operate KSRTC bus services in accordance with the timings of Maharani Women’s Commerce and Management College to address the transportation difficulties faced by students from rural areas.

Speaking after inaugurating a special interaction and awareness programme on the Yuvanidhi and Shakti schemes at the college, he said students should understand the benefits of the State government’s guarantee schemes and make proper use of them.

The programme was organised by the Guarantee Schemes Implementation Committee.

Responding to complaints from parents about a shortage of classes and lecturers for the BCA course, Mr. Gowda said he would raise the issue during the ongoing Assembly session and bring it to the attention of the Higher Education Minister to ensure early appointment of lecturers.

Former Krishnaraja MLA M.K. Somashekar said the State government had constituted guarantee scheme implementation committees at the constituency, district and State levels to ensure that the schemes reached all eligible beneficiaries.

He advised diploma and degree holders who were unable to secure employment to register under the Yuvanidhi scheme and utilise the financial assistance for preparation of competitive examinations.

Students should focus more on education instead of spending valuable time on mobile phones, he said, stressing the importance of acquiring English communication and computer skills in addition to a degree. These skills would improve their employment opportunities, he opined.

The government was focusing on women’s empowerment through schemes such as Shakti, which provides free bus travel to women, and Gruha Lakshmi, he added.

District Skill Development Officer Muralidhar said Yuvanidhi Plus had been introduced as an extension of the Yuvanidhi scheme, one of the State government’s five guarantee schemes, which provides assistance of ₹3,000 to unemployed graduates and ₹1,500 to unemployed diploma holders, besides focusing on enhancing the skills of youth, he said.

In the highly competitive employment market, merely possessing a degree or postgraduate qualification was not enough, Mr. Muralidhar said. Candidates with specialised skills were receiving greater preference and better salaries than those with academic qualifications alone, he said.

The Skill Development Department provides various employment-oriented training programmes free of cost through the Karnataka Skill Development Corporation and the Department of Employment and Training, he said. Courses that could cost between ₹40,000 and ₹1 lakh at private institutions were available free of cost through these initiatives, he added.

Maharani Women’s Commerce and Management College principal Renuka Bai V., MDCC Bank president R. Murthy and others were present.