Bhubaneswar: The Odisha government on Thursday launched a two-day state-level capacity-building programme to strengthen the implementation of the Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Grameen Kaushalya Yojana (DDU-GKY) 2.0 and improve employment prospects for rural youth.
Rural Development, Panchayati Raj and Drinking Water Minister Rabi Narayan Naik inaugurated the programme, organised by the Odisha Rural Development and Marketing Society (ORMAS) under the Panchayati Raj and Drinking Water Department.
Addressing the inaugural session, Naik said skill development and employment generation would play a crucial role in achieving the state’s vision of Viksit Odisha 2036 and the national goal of Viksit Bharat 2047.
Emphasising the potential of rural youth, particularly those from tribal, KBK, Aspirational and western Odisha districts, he called for greater focus on industry-oriented training and sustainable livelihood opportunities to enable them to benefit from emerging employment prospects across different sectors.
ORMAS CEO Dr Monica Priyadarshini said nearly 2.10 lakh rural youth had been trained under DDU-GKY since its inception, of whom more than 1.23 lakh had secured employment in various sectors.
Odisha has been assigned a target of training 62,050 rural youth during 2025-28, with an approved financial outlay of around Rs 750 crore. As many as 115 projects have already received approval, she said, stressing the need to ensure quality training, timely execution and better placement outcomes.
The programme brought together officials and experts from the Union Ministry of Rural Development, National Informatics Centre (NIC), NABARD Consultancy Services (NABCONS), National Institute of Rural Development and Panchayati Raj (NIRDPR), and Grant Thornton Bharat LLP’s Technical Support Agency, besides representatives of Project Implementing Agencies.
Technical sessions during the two-day programme will cover DDU-GKY 2.0 guidelines, the Unified IT Platform, project management, mobilisation of trainees, placement tracking, financial procedures and monitoring mechanisms.
The initiative is expected to enhance institutional capacity and improve coordination among implementing agencies for effective execution of the rural skilling programme across Odisha.
