Self-employment drive will make U.P. youths self-reliant: Yogi

State govt has earmarked funds for ‘Mukhyamantri Yuva Udyami Vikas Abhiyan’ in 2024-2025 budget, says U.P. CM

Chief minister Yogi Adityanath on Thursday asked senior officers of his government to launch the Mukhyamantri Yuva Udyami Vikas Abhiyan (chief minister’s young entrepreneurs development campaign) to connect educated and trained youth with opportunities for self-employment in Uttar Pradesh.

UP CM Yogi Adityanath was speaking at a high-level meeting that he chaired. (HT file)

Yogi presided over a high-level meeting and said the state government had earmarked funds for the ‘Mukhyamantri Yuva Udyami Vikas Abhiyan’ in the annual budget for 2024-2025 and this was the time to implement the initiative.

He viewed a presentation of the MSME department about the launch of the campaign and said the scheme will play a significant role in the state government’s efforts to create self-employment. Yogi said more youths should be made aware of the scheme and be encouraged to earn their livelihood and become self-reliant.

The state government proposes to provide financial grants to 100,000 youths annually by making loans from banks available to them. This will lead to the establishment of 100,000 micro enterprises every year and 1 million (10 lakh) youths will have the opportunity to engage in self-employment in the next 10 years.

Yogi said provisions should be made to offer grants not only to the general category but also to OBCs, women, disabled and those belonging to SCs and STs. He said subsidies should also be provided on margin money. The CM said interest-free loans should be made available to young entrepreneurs as far as possible.

Yogi said to guarantee effective implementation and ongoing monitoring of the scheme, qualified youths should be assigned to each district on the pattern of “CM Fellows” deployed in aspirational development blocks.

He said before offering financing for setting up an enterprise, it is essential to provide proper training to the youth. The CM said new entrepreneurs should receive assistance in packaging, branding, and marketing their products.