NYSC A'pura to provide fully equipped building for Yowun Sarasaviya - Assistant Director

Nimal Wijesinghe, Anuradhapura Additional District group correspondent

The National Youth Services Council, Anuradhapura is making arrangements to provide fully equipped buildings for its "Yowun Sarasaviya" (University for Youths) said Youth Services Council Assistant Director Sumithra Damayanthi.

She said Rs. 3 million has been allocated for building a three storeyed building complex to house the District NYSC office and the "Yovun Sarasaviya" which conducted degree courses in English and Commerce.

Addressing a press conference at the NYSC premises she said, the degree study courses were conducted, since its inauguration at the Technical College Anuradhapura on a monthly payment of Rs. 10,000 up to last February and as the authorities of the Technical College wanted the "Yovun Sarasaviya" to be evacuated, the NYSC had no other alternative than to house the University of Youths temporarily in the NYSC premises.

Explaining the crisis the Assistant Director said a temporary hall has been erected at a cost of Rs. 350,000 and all other sectors including the assembly hall "Yowun Nikethanaya (Youths Resort) were being occupied by the students of the Yowun Sarasaviya.

"The NYSC which earned nearly Rs. 100,000 monthly by renting the "Yowun Nikethanaya" for various activities such as dramas, conferences political meetings etc on week-ends. Since last February the NYSC has been denied of that income.

The NYSC Anuradhapura has placed the facts before the Chief Minister N.C.P. Berty Premalal Dissanayake.

Although the Chief Minister requested the management of the Technical College to accommodate the students till a suitable building was built the request had gone unheeded."

Damayanthi said since the beginning of the Yowun Sarasaviya nearly 200 students have graduated. She said in the School of Business Technology, an another wing of the NYSC Anuradhapura youths between the age group of 18-29 were being given an opportunity to follow Entrepreneur Certificate Study Course which was widely accepted by local and foreign agencies.

A batch of 30 youths were being given a training at the same time in business management, groceries, beauty culture, hair dressing, nursery courses etc. in 100 hours.

The NYSC supports the trained youths to start their own enterprises or secure jobs mainly in private sector and monetary agencies including banks are prepared to extend a helping hand to them being intervened by the NYSC, the Assistant Director explained. She said "We are very keen in paving the way for job opportunities to our youths.

Presently we have been able to form 518 societies of youths (Yawuvana Samaja) at village level.

The membership exceeds 20,000 youths who are mainly school leavers. The NYSC Anuradhapura arranged three job markets for them at Galenbindunuwewa, Horowpothana and Rambewa.

In January 2008 we have intend to organise a massive job market at which 1000 youths and 50 job providing institutes both Government and private would participate.