Bhubaneswar: As many as 1,05,444 youths received appointment letters at job fairs conducted in Odisha during the last five years, informed Skill Development and Technical Education Minister Sampad Chandra Swain in the Legislative Assembly today while replying to a question by MLA Kadraka Appala Swamy.

To generate more employment opportunities, district-level job fairs are organized by the State Skill Development Authority. Over the last five years (2019-20 to 2023-24), 226 such job fairs were conducted, attracting 2,53,216 participants, of whom 1,05,444 received appointment letters, the minister said in the reply.

The organization of these job fairs incurred a total expenditure of Rs 3,80,10,101, said Swain.

The minister further informed that during the past five years (2019-20 to 2023-24), 36,329 young men and women were provided training under the Placement-Linked Training Programme conducted by the Skill Development Authority, out of which 15,068 individuals secured employment.

Additionally, under the Chief Minister's Employment Generation Programme, the Odisha government trained a total of 18,42,067 youths over the past ten years (2014-15 to 2023-24), enabling them to become employable and self-reliant, the minister added.