Urban internship programme to provide graduates with experiential learning opportunities: HP minister

The programme was started with a vision to equip the youth with problem-solving and critical thinking skills in India’s fast-growing urban ecosystem

Urban development minister Sarveen Chaudhary on Sunday said that the Union government recently launched The Urban Learning Internship Programme (TULIP) for providing internship opportunities to fresh graduates in all urban local bodies (ULBS) with a vision to equip the youth with problem-solving and critical thinking skills in India’s fast-growing urban ecosystem. She said this programme will provide a platform for fresh graduates with experiential learning opportunities in the urban sector.

The Urban Learning Internship Programme was recently launched by the Centre (Representative image)

Chaudhary said that this would help enhance the value-to-market of state’s graduates and help create a potential talent pool in diverse fields like urban planning, transport engineering, environment, municipal finance etc. thus not only catalysing creation of prospective city managers but also talented private/ non-government sector professionals.

Minister said that TULIP was a stepping-stone towards self-reliant and self-sufficient India and would immensely benefit the youth of the state. The programme will aggregate opportunities for graduates on a single platform and allow them to apply for internships in the domain of urban governance.

This would lead to an infusion of fresh ideas and energy with the engagement of youth in the co-creation of solutions for solving India’s urban challenges. TULIP would also help fulfill twin goals of providing interns with the hands-on learning experience as well as infusing fresh energy and ideas in the functioning of State’s ULBs, she added.

The minister said that with the objective to enhance livelihood security in urban areas by providing 120 days of guaranteed wage employment to every household in the financial year 2020-21, the state government has launched Mukhya Mantri Shahri Ajeevika Yojana, as well.

It would facilitate skill enhancement of persons engaged in waged labour jobs to provide them better livelihood opportunities and to set up their own enterprises by imparting entrepreneurship training as well as subsidy linked credit linkages. It would also strengthen urban infrastructure and provisioning of quality civic amenities in the urban local bodies.