Faiz Aquil Ahmed Mumtaz, District Magistrate of Jamtara in Jharkhand, has triggered what could be called a ‘library movement’ in the infamous ‘phishing capital of India’. He has successfully renovated 118 dilapidated government buildings and converted them into public libraries in the past five months.
He has inaugurated around 100 of them and the remaining ones are likely to be opened soon.
Faiz believes that this initiative would positively change the identity of the Jamtara district.
It is said that the majority of online fraud calls received by people across the country emanate from Jamtara. Many youth, mostly drop-outs in the 15-35 years age group, have been turning to cybercrime to make a few quick bucks.
“With people using digital platforms more often than before, cybercrime incidences are only going to increase. In pursuit of easy money, youth were found resorting to online fraud. We need to divert them into studies,” Faiz says.
“Now the students don’t need to go to Patna or Delhi to prepare for competitive exams. They can remain in the villages and do that. People from lower class and lower middle class cannot afford coaching and so they give up hope,” he adds, explaining the significance of the initiative.
Faiz is an alumnus of Jamia Millia Islamia’s Residential Coaching Academy and had cleared civil service examinations, obtaining the 17th rank in 2014.
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Rushda Fathima Khan is the Staff Reporter for The Cognate.