50k start-ups, 2 cr seats in colleges: plans for youth

Establishing 50,000 start-ups and increasing seats in higher educational institutions by two crore in next five years will be high on Narendra Modi government's agenda.

The expansion of Mudra Yojna to 30 crore people for finding self-employment is also on the anvil besides introduction of a facility for entrepreneurs to avail loan up to Rs 50 lakh without any guarantee.

The government's plans for the youth found mention in President Ram Nath Kovind's address to the joint sitting of Parliament, his first after the 17th Lok Sabha was constituted.

Emphasising that the young generation must have meaningful participation in the building of New India, Kovind said attempts have been made for developing the skills of the youth, providing them financial support for start-ups and self-employment, and making available adequate number of seats for higher education in the past five years.

Highlighting that India has joined the league of countries with most number of start-ups in the world, he said the government is simplifying rules to improve the start-up ecosystem. "This campaign will be further expedited. Our goal is to establish 50,000 start-ups in the country by 2024," he said.

The President also said to enable various higher educational institutions of India to find a place in the top 500 educational institutions of the world, they are being encouraged through grant of autonomy and financial assistance.

The "government is striving to increase the number of seats in the country’s higher education system by one-and-a-half times by 2024. With this initiative, two crore additional seats would be available for the youth in higher educational institutions," he added.

Kovind also highlighted that government has made provision of 10% reservation for youth from economically weaker section of the general category and this would enable them to get more opportunities in employment and education.

On Mudra Yojna, he said about 19 crore loans have been disbursed for self-employment and now an effort will be made to cover 30 crore people by expanding this scheme.

"A facility for entrepreneurs to avail loan up to Rs 50 lakh without any guarantee will also be introduced. Apart from this, new employment opportunities will be generated through appropriate policies in sectors which have the potential to accelerate the economy," he said.