The district administration has initiated steps to provide light motor vehicle driving training to selected youths to generate employment opportunities in the Naxalite-hit areas of Gaya.

After completing the training, the youths can work as commercial drivers.

“The district administration will bear the cost of training and provide driving licences to them as part of the integrated action plan,” district magistrate Bandana Preyashi said. Incidentally, the integrated action plan is Preyashi’s brainchild.

“Employment generation activities in the Maoist-hit areas will help counter the Naxalite menace because it is more of a socio-economic issue,” she said.

To start with, the administration will provide training to 105 youths in four sub-divisions of the district — Gaya Sadar, Nimchak-Bathani, Tekari and Sherghati. Reputed motor training institutes, who have their offices in the district, have been asked to submit their expressions of interest through an open bid by June 20.

The training will be of three-month duration and the youths would get both theoretical and practical lessons on light motor vehicle driving. “Providing employment to the trained youths will be the institutes’ responsibility,” the magistrate said.

Besides generating employment opportunities for the youths, the move will help fill up the posts of trained drivers in the district.

“This (the training) will help reduce the number of road accidents,” Preyashi said.

This is not the first time that such an initiative has been taken in the district. The 159th battalion of Central Reserve Police Force had organised a three-month commando training programme for youths of the Naxalite-affected areas. A number of them are working as security guards.