Entrepreneurs ideal role models for J&K's youth: Mufti

Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti today said young entrepreneurs are the ideal role models for the state's Generation Next and lauded their achievement of translating imaginative ideas into real success stories against all odds, especially during the years of turbulence.
These self-empowered young men and women are trendsetters whose success needs to be celebrated, she said while interacting with a group of young entrepreneurs from diverse backgrounds.
These ranged from fields like industry, food processing, handicrafts, agriculture and allied sectors, an official spokesman said.
"My government will work on creating a real business- friendly environment which will give a further fillip to entrepreneurship in the state," the chief minister said.

Mufti said she was pleasantly surprised to know that most of the youngsters have become symbols of the state's resilience and enormous talent.
"We will also organise entrepreneurship and student exchange programmes, particularly in the area of skill development which will give a new direction to our youngsters," she said.

Mufti said the brilliance of Athar Aamir-ul-Shafi Khan, who stood second in the IAS examination, and Ayesha Aziz, who became the country's youngest pilot, is scripting a new chapter in the annals of Kashmir's history.
During the interaction, the entrepreneurs raised issues related to expansion of their existing units, availing incentives under the state and central industrial policies and getting a level-playing field in running their businesses in a hassle-free manner, the spokesman said.

The Chief Minister assured the entrepreneurs of positively considering the suggestions put forward, especially those related to creating a viability fund for business startups and incentivising those units which engage women workforce in large numbers.