TURA: Schools students in remote Dobu region of East Garo Hills got an opportunity on Friday to interact with IAS and IPS officers at a career counseling programme organised by the Dobu Public Health Centre (PHC).
The programme was one of a kind given that it was the first time that students from Dobu got a chance to personally interact with high-ranking officials of Garo hills and seek advice and information about career opportunities in administrative services.
Sub-Divisional Officer (Civil), Dadenggre, Swapnil Timbe interacting with the students enlightened them about different services and examinations conducted by the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) including National Defence Service and Combined Defence Services examinations.
Superintendent of Police West Garo Hills Dr M G Raghuvendra Kumar ignited the young minds with motivational lesson on passion, perseverance, focused goal and objective.
The Deputy Commissioner of East Garo Hills district, Ram Kumar informed on reservation policy for STs in UPSC examinations and urged them to appear in different administrative services and avail the benefit of the policy. “Tribal youth from North East particularly from Garo Hills hardly appear in civil service examination, it is important that our youth take up such examination”, Kumar added.
Meghalaya’s Education and Literacy Minister, Deborah Marak, who was also present during the counseling programme, congratulated Dobu PHC for taking the lead in creating awareness about the scopes in different UPSC examinations for the students of the backward area.
Encouraging the students to pursue their dreams, Marak asked the students to have a vision of what career path they would choose and work hard to achieve it. “The modern era calls for skill-oriented courses, which will enable us to be prepared for the future”, said Deborah Marak.
Informing the students that jobs in the government sector were saturated, Marak said that viable alternative was skill-based education, which will make them more employable human resources.
“The educational institutions should play the role of a motivator and guide to infuse vision and ignite the minds of the youth to channelize their dreams to reality”, the minister added.
Reminding the gathering that Garo Hills was blessed with extraordinary and talented young people but the challenge faced by the state’s education system has posed deterrence for the youth to live up to their true potentials, particularly in rural areas, Marak said, “Our young people do not get proper access to education and exposure, which are ingredients for youths to channelize their ideas and thoughts to reality”.
She also urged educated youth to take up agriculture and farming, which can provide them with better livelihood opportunities. “In advanced nation, children of farmers get educated to become better farmers, we have to follow the trend to enhance our farming practice in Garo Hills”, advised the minister.