After 'Ladli Behna' for women, Shivraj announces scheme for youth in election year

Bhopal, March 23 (IANS) Days after launching the 'Ladli Behna Yojana' that will provide Rs 1,000 financial assistance to women in a bid to woo the crucial 48 per cent female voters in the run-up to the Assembly polls scheduled later this year, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Thursday announced a slew of promises for the youth with the launch of the 'Yuva Niti' programme.

Chouhan launched the 'Yuva Portal' (yuvaportal.mp.gov.in) as part of the state government's 'Yuva Niti' with the idea of keeping the students connected with government schemes, resources and job updates.

Addressing a 'Youth Mahapanchayat' organised by the state government at the Motilal Nehru Stadium here, Chouhan made a slew of announcements to win the hearts of the students and job aspirants.

Chouhan said that job aspirants will now have to pay one-time registration fee for all competitive exams they appear for in a year.

"I am making a big announcement today. Our children pay fees for every government recruitment exam. They pay different amounts for different exams. Suppose if one student pays Rs 400 for a single recruitment test, and if he fills five forms in a year, he ends up paying Rs 2,000. But now the job aspirants will have to pay only one-time exam fee for all government recruitment exams for a period of one year," Chouhan said.

He also announced that a separate merit list of NEET will be made to provide 5 per cent reservation to the students of government-run schools.

Chouhan said that the state government has planned to unveil a larger scheme for the youth by the name of 'Mukhya Mantri Yuva Kaushal Earning Scheme'.

"This scheme has been prepared for all the unemployed youth of the state, wherein job-oriented training and skill development programmes will be included. The government has also planned to offer career counselling to students of Class 10 and Class 12. Besides these, an integrated system will be developed to connect students with the government's employment schemes and subsidies. This free-of-cost system will help students with academics, skill development and vocational training," Chouhan said.

Notably, Chouhan made these promises on the very day (March 23) his government completed three years in office after the Kamal Nath-led Congress government was toppled in March 2020.

The youth form 17 per cent of Madhya Pradesh's population. With the 'Yuva Niti', the BJP aims to woo the youth as the state goes to polls later this year.