<p>Karnataka has joined hands with ride-hailing company Uber as part of a new self-employment scheme known as Airavata that was launched here on Saturday.</p>.<p>The scheme, aimed at SC/ST youth, involves partnering with service providers and aggregators to provide employment by ownership of cabs and taxis. The government has called it a first-of-its-kind strategic livelihood programme.</p>.<p>Under this, the Social Welfare Department signed an agreement with Uber to identify and train 500 youth in the first phase. The government will provide a financial grant of Rs 5 lakh to each beneficiary, while Uber will assist in identifying eligible candidates in Bengaluru, Mysuru, Mangaluru and Hubballi.</p>.<p>Besides training them, Uber will encourage the beneficiaries to register as Driver Partners on its platform. Beneficiaries will also get assistance to avail additional loans from financial institutions.</p>.<p>Overall, the government is looking to invest over Rs 225 crore in the scheme to create “industry-owned private enterprise” for youth from Tier 2 and 3 cities. The goal, the government said, was to promote a fleet of 4,500 cabs and taxis across Karnataka.</p>.<p>“We are committed to provide the SC/ST community with the necessary resources to chart their success stories. With Uber, we will ensure economic opportunities and income levels in tier 2 and tier 3 cities improve,” Social Welfare Minister Priyank Kharge said.</p>.<p>Deputy Chief Minister G Parameshwara, who flagged off the Airavata scheme, said the measure would create jobs and boost economic development.</p>.<p>“There cannot be development without job creation and I hope this Airavata acts as a catalyst in Karnataka’s growth story. I hope more partners like Uber join us,” he said.</p>.<p>Uber India & South Asia president Pradeep Parameswaran said the scheme helped incentivise skills building coupled with entrepreneurship. “As a multi-modal platform, we believe that technology holds the key to creating millions of economic opportunities while solving for mobility, security and congestion,” he said.</p>.<p>Interested candidates may apply by downloading the application forms from www.kalyanakendra.com and www.adcl.karnataka.gov.in.</p>.<p>These forms will be available on the site between October 2 and October 31, 2018.</p>
<p>Karnataka has joined hands with ride-hailing company Uber as part of a new self-employment scheme known as Airavata that was launched here on Saturday.</p>.<p>The scheme, aimed at SC/ST youth, involves partnering with service providers and aggregators to provide employment by ownership of cabs and taxis. The government has called it a first-of-its-kind strategic livelihood programme.</p>.<p>Under this, the Social Welfare Department signed an agreement with Uber to identify and train 500 youth in the first phase. The government will provide a financial grant of Rs 5 lakh to each beneficiary, while Uber will assist in identifying eligible candidates in Bengaluru, Mysuru, Mangaluru and Hubballi.</p>.<p>Besides training them, Uber will encourage the beneficiaries to register as Driver Partners on its platform. Beneficiaries will also get assistance to avail additional loans from financial institutions.</p>.<p>Overall, the government is looking to invest over Rs 225 crore in the scheme to create “industry-owned private enterprise” for youth from Tier 2 and 3 cities. The goal, the government said, was to promote a fleet of 4,500 cabs and taxis across Karnataka.</p>.<p>“We are committed to provide the SC/ST community with the necessary resources to chart their success stories. With Uber, we will ensure economic opportunities and income levels in tier 2 and tier 3 cities improve,” Social Welfare Minister Priyank Kharge said.</p>.<p>Deputy Chief Minister G Parameshwara, who flagged off the Airavata scheme, said the measure would create jobs and boost economic development.</p>.<p>“There cannot be development without job creation and I hope this Airavata acts as a catalyst in Karnataka’s growth story. I hope more partners like Uber join us,” he said.</p>.<p>Uber India & South Asia president Pradeep Parameswaran said the scheme helped incentivise skills building coupled with entrepreneurship. “As a multi-modal platform, we believe that technology holds the key to creating millions of economic opportunities while solving for mobility, security and congestion,” he said.</p>.<p>Interested candidates may apply by downloading the application forms from www.kalyanakendra.com and www.adcl.karnataka.gov.in.</p>.<p>These forms will be available on the site between October 2 and October 31, 2018.</p>