Uttarakhand to boost entrepreneurship

Bamboo houses, yoga centres, laundry facilities, souvenir manufacture, bakery products — these are the kinds of micro enterprises that can easily be nurtured in Uttarakhand, according to experts.

With the state government having provided a host of incentives for industrial development, unskilled youths need to turn entrepreneurs, they aver. According to a survey, there are 703,000 unemployed youngsters who are registered with different unemployment exchanges in the state but are desperate to take up any job.

This desperation of unemployed youths was evident at a recent drive for the recruitment of home-guards in the state, when scores of post-graduates turned up for interviews. The basic requirement was only eighth standard.

Keeping the growing unemployment in mind, the state’s Small Industries and Labour Minister Harish Chandra Durgapal will kickstart an entrepreneurship awareness workshop from December 27 from Haldwani town in Nainital district. It is being launched by the state government in partnership with the Industries Association of Uttarakhand (IAU).

“We will be covering all the 13 districts of the state in a one-year period. During this time, we have set a target of registering nearly 2,000 entrepreneurs,” said Pankaj Gupta, president of IAU. “We will provide awareness, motivation, training and hand-holding to the youths,” said Gupta.

During the programme, young entrepreneurs will be asked to give their preferences in terms of sectors where they feel they can do well. They will also be given choices like specialising in fields where they can build micro enterprises.