Praveen Rodrigues
Daijiworld Media Network - Dubai
Dubai, Nov 6 : Dakshina Kannada district incharge and forest minister Ramanath Rai, who is the brain behind the mega job fair to be organised in Mangaluru on November 19 and 20, visted Dubai to meet entrepreneurs from the Gulf and invite them to be part of the 'Mangaluru Udyoga Mela 2015'.
On Thursday, November 5, a meeting was convened by the minister with entrepreneurs from the coastal region residing in the Gulf, at Radisson Blue Hotel Deira. Mangaluru DC AB Ibrahim, environment and ecological department secretary Ramachandra, IFS, Karnataka Polution Control Board secretary Siddappa Shantappa, IFS, member of Rajiv Gandhi University Dr U T Iftikar, and Bantwal Urban Development Authoity chairman Pius Rodrigues were also part of the delegation from the Karnataka government.
Speaking about the 'Mangaluru Udyoga Mela', DC Ibrahim said, "The Gulf region has grown over the years and there are plenty of job opportunities here. Every year more than 1 lac students graduate from various institutions from Mangaluru. We have enormous talents, outstanding youth with plenty of capabilities. Mangaluru is a huge pool for human resource, and we must be proud of this. We should create a platform for the youth of our region to have access to the best employment opportunities, therefore we are organising this two-day job fair, which is the brain-child of our district minister B Ramanath Rai.
"The job mela is not restricted to Mangalureans alone, but preference will be given to the entire coastal region, and people from all over the state, or even from other states can participate," the DC added.
He urged companies based in the Gulf to participate as there will be no charges whatsoever for anyone, and moreover, food, accommodation and transport will be provided by the district administration for the representatives of companies who come from abroad and other places.
During the brief interactive session, CEOs and representatives from various companies aired their opinions and suggestions about the job mela. There was also a request for organising investment fair in Mangaluru as a huge number of entrepreneurs here have evinced interest in investing in Mangaluru, provided they get good support from the state government.
Environment secretary, while answering queries about the govenment said that Karnataka is now at the 9th position in terms of ease of doing business. "Earlier there were huge delays, even for over year or two in getting environment clearance certificate, but the current government under the leadership of state industries minister R V Deshpande has eased the formalities by granting such clearance within a month or so." He also assured to address other hiccups in starting business in the coastal region. He too invited investors to set up their businesses in Karnataka.
Minister Ramanth Rai started his speech in English, switched to Kannada, and also spoke in Tulu, Beary and Konkani amidst huge rounds of applause from the members of the business community present in the hall. "Inda is a great nation. Only in India can we find unity in diversity. Let us not compare India with any other foreign country, as it will be an injustice to our country if we do so, because India is a unique country with a rich cultural heritage."
"The job fair in Mangaluru is the need of the hour, as we want to promote communal harmony in our region, and my personal opinion is that unemployment is one of the reasons for communal disharmony in our place. We have a number of unemployed youth, so this job fair should be a platform for every aspirant in India or abroad. We are proud that coastal Karnataks has produced some of the most brilliant talents who are shining all over the world."
He appealed to entrepenuers based in the Gulf to support and participate in the job fair. A few of the companies owned by people of the coastal region instantly announced their participation. Over 75 business delegates from the UAE and Saudi Arabia were present in the meeting.
Job aspirants and employers may login to www.mangaluruudyogamela.com for more details