Bhubaneswar, March 14: A two-day job fair organised by the state employment mission at the tribal-dominated Jajpur district saw major recruiters such as Wipro, IBM, Larsen and Turbo reach out to the rural youth with job offers.

Thirty-six camps for various types of jobs were put up by IT and information technology-enabled services (ITES) organisations as well as companies from the service sector as well as the hospitality industry, to absorb unemployed youths into various trades.

Despite poor road network, impending Maoist threats and rising mercury, about 25,000 unemployed youths from the tribal-dominated district of Nabarangpur, Malkangiri, Koraput travelled to the spot to apply for various posts.

“At least 10,000 applications were received by the companies for 5,356 positions on the first day of the fair,” said project administrator, Integrated Tribal Development Agency (ITDA), Tuku Barik. These included offers from textile and spinning mills, BPO companies, hospitality and house keeping sectors and construction companies.

“Data for the second day is yet to reach us, but it will definitely be more than 15,000,” Barik added.

“The job fair had opportunities for everyone, starting from those with higher qualifications to those with least qualifications.

“The state employment mission aims to make sure that youngsters get jobs according to their capabilities and qualifications. The fair was definitely a success and we plan to hold more such fairs,” said state employment mission director Arabinda Padhee.

“India is all set to become a knowledge capital and in a few years, the country will need a large number of skilled professionals.

“Hence the state, especially the youth of underdeveloped regions such as Koraput, should be prepared to grab whatever opportunity comes their way by scaling up their potential,” Padhee added.

The district administration is also planning to come up with a proper mechanism to improve the skills of the local youth by setting up a skill development hub in the region by the end of this year.

Among those present at the fair were Koraput district collector Rajesh Pravakar Patil and MLA Jeypore Rabinarayan Nanda.

Government officials and volunteers guided the candidates to the different job counters.

In the absence of job opportunities, left wing extremists in the region have of late been trying to lure youngsters to join the Maoist fold.