Srinagar July 25: In a significant move aimed at boosting the digital development and youth engagement in Jammu and Kashmir,   Minister for Food, Civil Supplies & Consumer Affairs, Transport, Information Technology, Youth Services & Sports, Satish Sharma, today met with Ashish Wattal, Country Director of Google India, and Sanjay Dewan, Head, North States, Public Sector, Google.

During the meeting, the Minister emphasized the need to explore collaborative avenues with Google to promote the digital inclusion, entrepreneurship and employment generation for the youth of Jammu and Kashmir.

“J&K’s youth have immense potential and it is our priority to channelize their energy into productive and innovative sectors. Strategic partnerships with global technology leaders like Google will help us unlock new opportunities in skilling, digital education and job creation,” said the Minister.

He called upon Google to support the government in launching tailored skill development programs, digital literacy campaigns and technology-driven entrepreneurship models, particularly in rural and remote areas.

Google team reiterated Google’s commitment to digital transformation in India and expressed keen interest in working with the Government of Jammu and Kashmir. They also extended support for designing the region-specific training programs, workshops and certification courses for the students, professionals and aspiring entrepreneurs.

The Minister directed the officers  of the IT department to formulate a concrete action plan for initiating collaborative projects with Google, including potential pilots in IT education, cloud training, AI applications and youth innovation labs.