Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia on Friday announced a major employment initiative for Madhya Pradesh's Ashoknagar district, saying 2,592 educated youths will be provided jobs under the 'Lakhpati Yuva' initiative through the expansion of a call centre project.
The project, which aims to generate white-collar employment in a smaller district, will see a 2,000-seat call centre established in its second phase at an estimated cost of Rs 6 crore. The expansion will increase the project's employment capacity from 592 to 2,592 youths.
Addressing a public gathering in Ashoknagar, Scindia said the initiative was designed on the lines of the 'Lakhpati Didi' programme and seeks to provide educated youth with stable employment opportunities in their home district. "Lakhpati Yuva is an initiative to make our young people financially self-reliant.
Just as the 'Lakhpati Didi' scheme has empowered women, this programme will create similar opportunities for educated youth. College graduates will receive jobs with monthly salaries ranging between Rs 20,000 and Rs 25,000," Scindia said.
He said 592 youths have already secured employment under the existing project, while the proposed second phase would create jobs for another 2,000 people. The Union Minister said the initiative would help reduce migration from smaller towns by enabling graduates to find employment closer to home while strengthening the local economy.
Rejecting criticism of the project, Scindia said only those with a "negative mindset" were questioning the initiative. "This is not merely a call centre project. It is a model for employment-led development. With the second phase, employment opportunities will increase to 2,592 youths, creating a new economic ecosystem in Ashoknagar," he said.
Scindia added that employment generation was the central focus of nearly Rs 5,000 crore worth of development works being undertaken in Ashoknagar, expressing confidence that the district would emerge as a new service-sector and employment hub in the region.