Employment scheme fails to achieve target

Ambika Sharma

Tribune News Service

Solan, June 16

Launched to provide self-employment to the youth, the Mukhyamantri Yuva Aajeevika Yojana has failed to achieve its target.

The scheme, launched in August 2018, was being implemented through the Rural Development Department. It was transferred to the Industries Department in February this year.

A budgetary provision of Rs 75 crore had been set aside for the scheme in the last financial year. The scheme was supposed to be implemented through Block Development Officers and the youth both in rural and urban areas were to be benefited.

Figures secured from the district administration revealed that against 83 applications received last year, only one case of Baddi was approved and a loan of Rs 5 lakh sanctioned.

The remaining applications are pending and the youth desirous of opening their own ventures failed to get any loan under the get get any loan under the scheme.

With the scheme failing to give encouraging results across the state as barely 21 cases had been sanctioned, it was merged with the Mukhyamantri Swavalamban Yojana being implemented by the Industries Department in February. “These cases were yet to be disbursed loans at the time of merger of the scheme,” officials of the Rural Development Department said.

The state government had provided an investment subsidy of 25 per cent for men and 30 per cent for women, up to a maximum of Rs 30 lakh to the youth aged between 18 and 40 under the scheme, for which online applications were invited.

With as many as of 8.66 lakh unemployed youth being registered in the employment exchanges of the state, such schemes were expected to give a major impetus to employment. Figures also revealed that only 7,016 jobs could be provided from April 2018 to March 2019, which included 1,784 in the government sector and 5,232 in the private sector.

“With the state government unable to provide jobs or even implement schemes aimed at encouraging the youth to open their own ventures, officials should remove the bottlenecks and ensure their effective implementation,” Raj Chauhan, an MBA, who failed to find an apt job as per his qualification, said.

8.66 lakh youth unemployed

• The scheme had to be merged with the Mukhyamantri Swavalamban Yojana. 
• Youth desirous of opening their own ventures failed to get any loan under the scheme.
• With as many as of 8.66 lakh unemployed youth being registered in employment exchanges, the Mukhyamantri Yuva Aajeevika Yojana was expected to give a major impetus to employment.