Bihar’s chief minister Nitish Kumar joined a nationwide skill‑convocation online, where Prime Minister Narendra Modi handed certificates to ITI toppers from all over India. The event, part of the Kaushal Deekshant Samaroh 2025, celebrated students who excelled in their technical‐training exams.
During the virtual ceremony Mr Kumar highlighted state programmes aimed at giving young people better work prospects. He pointed to the new Bihar Youth Commission, set up to advocate for students and job seekers, and to the Jan Nayak Karpoori Thakur Skill University, which will provide industry‑aligned courses to build a globally competitive workforce.
The launch of the Skill Convocation was a boost for the state’s youth. The government has started handing out appointment letters for fresh jobs and announced scholarships for 25 lakh students. Bihar aims to create one crore (ten million) jobs for young people in the next five years.
Beyond the state, Prime Minister Modi unveiled the PM‑SETU scheme at the same ceremony. This centrally sponsored programme will upgrade 1,000 government ITIs across India for a total investment of ₹60 billion. The plan is a hub‑and‑spoke model: 200 hub ITIs will link to 800 spoke ITIs, each cluster equipped with modern tools, digital training and a startup incubation hub. Industry partners will run these hubs and focus on outcomes that match current market demand. The first round of revamp will concentrate on ITIs in Patna and Darbhanga.
PM‑SETU will change the ITI system by keeping government ownership but letting industry manage training. Support from the World Bank and Asian Development Bank will provide global co‑financing.
At the same time, Modi opened 1,200 vocational skill labs in 400 Navodaya Vidyalayas and 200 Eklavya Model Residential Schools across 34 states and union territories. The labs will give students hands‑on training in 12 high‑demand fields such as IT, automotive, agriculture, electronics, logistics and tourism. The project follows the National Education Policy 2020 and the CBSE curriculum, and will train 1,200 vocational teachers to deliver industry‑relevant lessons.
Looking ahead to the Bihar assembly elections, the prime minister launched a new “Mukhyamantri Nishchay Svyam Sahayata Bhatta” scheme. Nearly half a million graduate youths will receive a monthly stipend of ₹1,000 for two years, plus free skill training. Together with this, the redesigned Bihar Student Credit Card Scheme will offer interest‑free education loans up to ₹4 lakh, easing college costs for over 3.9 lakh students who already benefited from loans worth more than ₹7,880 crore.
To strengthen youth impact, Mr Modi inaugurated the Bihar Yuva Ayog, a statutory commission for adults aged 18‑45. The commission will harness the state’s young talent and channel their energies into productive opportunities. He also laid the foundation stone for new academic and research facilities at four Bihar universities—Patna University, Bhupendra Narayana Mandal University (Madhepura), Jai Prakash Vishwavidyalaya (Chapra) and Nalanda Open University—under the PM‑USHA programme. The ₹160 crore investment will build modern labs, hostels and multidisciplinary learning for more than 27,000 students.
A highlight for STEM students was the dedication of the Bihta campus of NIT‑Patna. The campus can host 6,500 students and features a 5G use‑case lab, a Regional Academic Centre for Space with ISRO and an Innovation & Incubation Centre that has already helped nine startups.
Finally, the prime minister distributed appointment letters to over 4,000 newly recruited government officials. He also released ₹450 crore in scholarships via Direct Benefit Transfer to 25 lakh Class 9 and Class 10 students under the Mukhyamantri Balak/Balika Scholarship Scheme.
In one day, the federal and state governments showcased a wide range of initiatives—Skill SETU, vocational labs, student loan schemes, youth commissions and new universities—underscoring a bold push for India’s talent pipeline. These projects aim to give young Indians the skills and education they need to secure jobs, start businesses, and compete on a global stage.
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