J&K Bank drives youth empowerment with 3,100+ disbursements in ‘Big Week’ blitz
Government-Bank collaboration key to Mission YUVA success: MD
Srinagar, Sep 2: Marking another significant milestone in regional youth empowerment, J&K Bank and Mission YUVA today celebrated the ‘Big Week Campaign,’ culminating the successful credit disbursement to over 3,100 aspiring entrepreneurs.
Held at the Bank’s Corporate Headquarters, the closing ceremony was co-presided over by MD & CEO, J&K Bank Amitava Chatterjee and Secretary to Government, Labour & Employment and Revenue Department, Kumar Rajeev Ranjan (IAS) in the presence of Director Employment and Mission Director, Mission YUVA, Harvinder Singh (IAS). The event was also attended by Chief General Manager Ashutosh Sareen, General Managers Sanjay Gupta and Suresh Kumar Chowdhary; Deputy General Managers Rosy Tikoo, Shamim Ahmad and Abdul Majid besides other senior officers. The Bank’s divisional heads and all zonal and cluster heads across J&K participated virtually in the programme.
Thanking the Bank, Secretary to Government, Labour & Employment and Revenue Department, Kumar Rajeev Ranjan said, “J&K Bank has been an integral partner in Mission YUVA right from its conceptualisation. I thank the Bank’s leadership, particularly MD & CEO Amitava Chatterjee, and its and entire field-level team for their committed role in advancing this transformative programme.”
Emphasising that dignified employment was fundamental to a dignified life, he said every loan disbursed was not merely a financial transaction but represented a life being guided towards enterprise and hope.
He further said that Mission YUVA had already attracted the attention of key stakeholders in the country’s governance system, as entrepreneurship and self-employment offered the only viable response to the growing challenge of unemployment. He described Mission YUVA as an extraordinary journey that promised to emerge as a great success story and had all the ingredients to illuminate the way for the rest of the country.
Terming collaboration between the Government and the Bank a key enabler of Mission YUVA’s success so far, MD & CEO Amitava Chatterjee said, “The kind of ownership demonstrated by the J&K Government towards this transformative employment-generation programme—through comprehensive reviews and sustained follow-up—is unprecedented. Mission YUVA is a perfect example of how thorough groundwork can be translated into successful outcomes.”
However, MD & CEO strongly emphasised the need to look beyond the establishment of enterprises. “Setting up enterprises alone should not be our objective. Their sustainability and expansion – supported through the second phase of Bank finance -will ensure their meaningful contribution to the J&K’’s GDP. All our operational heads must, therefore, ensure continued handholding and consistent guidance to these young entrepreneurs”, he said.
Expressing gratitude to the Bank’s leadership and staff for their commitment to the programme, Director Employment and Mission Director, Mission YUVA, Harvinder Singh said, “It is with your unwavering support that we have been able to usher in an entrepreneurial revolution across J&K. In just over a year, Mission YUVA has achieved disbursements of around Rs 1750 crore – an accomplishment in itself. I congratulate the entire J&K Bank team for achieving more than 3100 disbursements during the Big Week Campaign alone. Thank you for being part of Mission YUVA; together, we shall continue this transformative journey.”
Earlier, welcoming the dignitaries and participants, General Manager (RAM) Sanjay Gupta said that Mission YUVA was not merely a government scheme but a mission being pursued by the Bank with purpose and determination to generate employment, promote entrepreneurship and give wings to the aspirations of the region’s youth.
Highlighting the progress achieved, he said that around 36,000 cases had been sanctioned so far, while nearly 32,000 young entrepreneurs had already received disbursements.
