Declares India’s Intellectual Strength as Its Greatest Power
NEW DELHI- Prime Minister Narendra Modi today inaugurated multiple youth-focused initiatives worth over ₹62,000 crore at the Kaushal Deekshant Samaroh held at Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi. The Prime Minister underscored the nation’s reliance on its intellectual and skilled workforce, stating with conviction, “India is a country of knowledge and skill, this intellectual strength is our greatest power.”
The event, which was initially planned as a convocation ceremony, was elevated into a mega-festival following a proposal by Bihar Chief Minister Shri Nitish Kumar. The Prime Minister extended his greetings to lakhs of students from Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) across the country, as well as students and teachers in Bihar.
The Prime Minister announced two key initiatives in education and skill development:
PM SETU Yojana: A ₹60,000 crore scheme aimed at making ITIs more robustly integrated with industries. Shri Modi stated that this scheme will upgrade over 1,000 ITI institutions with new machinery and industry-expert curricula, and will specifically “connect India’s youth with the world’s skill demands.”
Skill Labs: 1,200 new skill labs were inaugurated across Navodaya Vidyalayas and Eklavya Model Schools nationwide.
“India’s ITIs are not only premier institutions of industrial education, they are also the workshops of an Aatmanirbhar Bharat,” the Prime Minister exclaimed, noting that the government’s focus is on increasing the number of ITIs—which has grown by nearly 5,000 in the last decade to a total of 15,000—and continuously upgrading them.
Marking the day as a grand celebration for Bihar, Shri Modi dedicated several projects and schemes to the state’s youth, including the establishment of a new Skill Training University. He announced that this new institution will be named after Bharat Ratna Jananayak Karpoori Thakur.
“Bharat Ratna Karpoori Thakur Ji devoted his entire life to social service and the advancement of education, the skill university being established in his name will serve as a powerful means to carry forward that vision,” the Prime Minister affirmed.
Addressing the youth of Bihar, the Prime Minister highlighted the state government’s efforts to reverse the damage caused by misgovernance two decades ago, announcing that the state government is now working to double the employment opportunities in the next five years compared to the last two decades. He noted that in the last two years alone, over 2.5 lakh teachers have been appointed in Bihar.
The Prime Minister concluded by emphasizing the core philosophy behind the government’s investment: “When the strength of the youth increases, the nation grows stronger.” He projected that India is moving towards becoming a top-three global economy, driven by the growth in manufacturing, exports, and job creation in sectors like mobile phones, electronics, and automobiles, significantly benefiting the skilled workforce trained at ITIs.
The event was attended by Union Minister Shri Jayant Chaudhary, with Bihar Chief Minister Shri Nitish Kumar and Union Ministers Shri Jual Oram, Shri Rajiv Ranjan Singh, and Shri Sukanta Majumdar joining via video conferencing.
PIB
