Lucknow, Aug 8 (IANS): Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Thursday called for the implementation of the Mukhyamantri Yuva Udyami Vikas Abhiyan (MYUVA) scheme, aimed at fostering entrepreneurship among youth.

In a meeting, the CM said, the government had allocated funds for the 'MYUVA' in the Budget, and now the time has come to implement this initiative.

The innovative scheme is designed to empower educated and skilled youth across the state, facilitating self-employment opportunities and fostering the establishment of new Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs).

He stressed that more youth should be apprised about the scheme to encourage them to earn their livelihood and become self-reliant.

The Principal Secretary of MSMEs, who was directed to devise a comprehensive action plan for the initiative, informed the Chief Minister that the scheme would provide financial grants to 1,00,000 youth annually by facilitating loans from banks, thus enabling the establishment of 1,00,000 micro enterprises each year.

"Thus, over the next 10 years, 1 million youth will have the opportunity to engage in self-employment," he noted.

Beneficiaries who have undergone training in various government-run schemes, such as the Vishwakarma Shram Samman Yojana, One District One Product Training and Toolkit Scheme, Scheduled Caste, Tribe, Other Backward Class Training Scheme, and Skill Upgradation (Kaushal Unnayan) run by the Uttar Pradesh Skill Development Mission, will be eligible for assistance.

Youths having certificates, diplomas, and degrees from educational institutions will also be entitled to benefits under this scheme.

The Chief Minister asked officials to make provisions for offering grants to the general category, OBCs, women, Divyangjans, and SC/ST individuals for establishing enterprises.

Additionally, subsidies should be provided on margin money, he said

The CM said to ensure interest-free loans to young entrepreneurs, interest subsidy and Credit Guarantee Fund Trust for Micro and Small Enterprises (CGTMSE) coverage should also be provided for the fixed period of a loan,

To guarantee effective implementation of the scheme, the Chief Minister directed that qualified youth be assigned to each district, akin to the CM Fellows deployed in aspirational development blocks.

The government has allocated Rs 1,000 crore in the Budget for the financial year 2024-25 to support this initiative.