Kaushal Mela 2025 | 18 Jul 2025

Why in News? 

The city of Lucknow hosted the Kaushal Mela 2025 on the occasion of World Youth Skills Day at Indira Gandhi Pratishthan. 

• It focuses on promoting vocational training, skill development, and self-reliance among the youth of Uttar Pradesh. 

Key Points 

• Uttar Pradesh Government’s Skilling Initiative: 
  • Uttar Pradesh Skill Development Mission (UPSDM):  
    • Target Group: The mission provides free, employment-oriented training for youths aged 14 to 35. 
    • Objective: The state government aims to create employment opportunities based on skills. 
    • Annual Training: Every year, 3 lakh youths are trained across more than 2,800 training centers. 
    • Total Training: As of March 2025, 14,13,716 youths have been trained since the mission's inception in FY 2017-18. 
    • Employment Facilitation: The mission has successfully facilitated employment for 5,66,483 youths. 
    • Partnerships: The mission has partnered with 24 major industrial establishments as training providers and 8 placement agencies to boost job opportunities. 
    • It is India’s first integrated model that runs five Central Government and one State Government skill development schemes in a standardized and coordinated manner. 
      • Skill Development Initiative (SDI): A GoI-funded scheme by the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, offering MES courses to youth aged 14–35 from all categories with a focus on 30% women and 75% placement. 
      • Special Central Assistance to Scheduled-Caste Sub-Plan: A Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment scheme targeting SC youth (14–35 years), offering MES and QP-NOS courses with 30% women participation, fully funded by GoI. 
      • Multi-Sectoral Development Programme (MSDP): Run by the Ministry of Minority Affairs, this GoI-funded scheme provides MES training to minority youth in selected districts of UP, ensuring 33% women participation and 75% placement. 
      • Border Area Development Programme (BADP): A Home Ministry scheme for youth in border areas (19 blocks) of UP, offering MES and QP-NOS training with 50% women participation, fully funded by GoI. 
      • Building & Other Construction Workers’ Scheme (BOCW): A GoUP-funded scheme offering MES and QP-NOS training to registered construction workers and their families aged 14–50 years. 
      • State Skill Development Fund (SSDF): A UP state top-up fund providing MES and QP-NOS training to youth aged 14–35, targeting 20% minorities and 30% women, with a 60% placement goal. 
• A State Skill Development Fund (SSDF) has been instituted to provide top-up funding and ensure effective scheme integration. 
  • According to common minimum norms, 70% placement of certified candidates is mandatory, with wage employment forming at least 50%.‘