Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Saturday said his government will set up two "brainstorming centres" in Amritsar and Mohali for students to share their business ideas on the lines of the "Speakers' Platform" in Munich, Germany.
Addressing a gathering here, Mann said the state government has already introduced the "Business Blasters" initiative at the school level for idea-sharing and that a total amount of Rs 11 crore has been disbursed to students.
The motive is to provide platforms for brainstorming to students so that new business ideas prop up, he said.
On the same lines, the state government is going to set up "brainstorming centres" for new business ideas in Amritsar and SAS Nagar (Mohali), an official release quoted Mann as saying.
Extending his best wishes to women on International Women's Day, Mann quoted a Gurbani verse and said the Sikh gurus always held women in high esteem.
He expressed concern over female foeticide, which is still prevalent in the society.
Mann said women have excelled in every walk of life and emerged as role models with their hard work and success.
They have made their parents, the society and the state proud by achieving success in even those areas that were earlier considered a fiefdom of men, he said.
Replying to a student's query about introducing technology in the state, the chief minister said his government is already integrating artificial intelligence (AI) across various sectors.
He said the state government has introduced AI in policing, agriculture, finance and other fields to ensure efficiency and transparency.
Encouraging students to embrace the digital era, Mann said this is the era of digitalisation and Punjab is moving forward with a vision to become a leader in technological innovations.
He said the main focus of his government is on providing employment-oriented education and developing skills that align with the demands of the modern world.
Mann underlined the importance of skill development, adding that education should not be confined just to degrees, rather it should be about acquiring skills that make one employable and capable of contributing to the society.
Describing women as "creators", the chief minister hailed them for their invaluable contributions to the society.
He said his government has made concerted efforts for empowering women.
Mann said the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has 11 women MLAs and added that eight women officers have been appointed as deputy commissioners and three as senior superintendents of police.
He further said a woman officer has been appointed as the commissioner of police in Punjab and 19 women have been appointed as additional deputy commissioners.
Seven have been appointed as secretaries in various departments, he said.
Mann further said necessary amendments have been made in rules for changing the physical criteria for the recruitment of women as fire-fighting staff.
None of the previous governments had bothered to change these rules because they were least bothered about people and their problems, Mann alleged.
He announced that Punjab will be the first state in the country to recruit women as the fire-fighting staff.