More than 4.80 lakh women in rural areas of Uttar Pradesh have been trained for testing water quality while around 7.50 lakh youth have been trained for plumbing, electrical works and other skills under an initiative of the Jal Shakti Ministry in the state, according to officials.
For the water testing, field test kits (FTKs) have been provided to these women -- five from each revenue village in the state, a senior official of the ministry said.
"Now these rural women are checking water sources from village to village. Due to their efforts, the health of the village is improving and water-borne diseases are kept in check," the official said.
He said apart from training over 4.80 lakh women so far, technical training has been provided to around 7.50 lakh youths in each village of the state, which is helping them get employment opportunities in their own villages.
"As of now, the youth have been trained in plumbing, electrical works, as motor mechanics, fitter and as masons. Those who complete the training are being linked with employment as local pump operators in villages," the official told PTI requesting not to be named.
Among the 75 districts, the most number of trainings have been conducted in Jaunpur (23,010), followed by Azamgarh (22,836), Sitapur (20,790), Prayagraj (20,007), Hardoi (16,944), Gorakhpur (16,882), Ghazipur (16,081), Bareilly (15,509) and Deoria (15,405), according to official data accessed by PTI.
Training has also been provided to over 37,500 people across Banda, Chitrakoot, Hamirpur, Jhansi, Jalaun, Lalitpur and Mahoba -- the seven districts of UP which constitute the parched Bundelkhand region bordering northern Madhya Pradesh.
In Bundelkhand, the maximum number of trainings have been conducted in Jalaun (7,488), followed by Jhansi (6,435), Banda (6,078), Lalitpur (5,371), Chitrakoot (4,307), Hamirpur (4,290) and Mahoba (3,549), the data showed.
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