Bhopal, May 13 (IANS): Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Friday hailed Prime Minister Narendra Modi and called him a "man of ideas".

Speaking at the launch of the first-ever technical training programme for rural tribals in Bhopal, Chouhan said, "Prime Minister Naredra Modi is a man of ideas. Fortunately, this country has a visionary prime minister. He has not only visions, but also ideas to execute them on ground."

Chouhan said the state needs around two lakh skilled youth for 51,000 villages in the state. The Madhya Pradesh government has started technical training programmes for tribal youths on an experimental basis.

Chouhan pointed out that on one hand, people are migrating from the rural areas and on the other hand, there is a shortage of skilled hands in the villages. "This deficit can be fulfilled by only making the people in rural areas skillful," he said.

"There is a bike in every home in villages. Who would repair them? Every field has electric pumps. Who will rewind them if they get burnt? Numerous mechanical equipment are used in farming. Who will keep them in working order?" Chouhan said.

Meanwhile, Chouhan was seen playing 'dhol' and dancing with the tribal people at the event in Bhopal.

BJP national general secretary (organisation) B L Santosh, who was also present on the occasion, said, "Scheduled Tribal Cluster Development Project was conceived at a conference of 40 tribal MPs at Mumbai. However, due to Covid-19 pandemic, its implementation was delayed by two years."

Santosh said that the training of the first batch of tribal youths under the project was beginning now.

He said that the administration and elected people's representatives like MPs and MLAs should contribute to the success of this project.

"This is a Central government programme, which has started in Madhya Pradesh on an experimental basis, and after successful operation of this pilot project, it would be implemented all over India," an official told IANS.