UP to establish 12 mega skill hubs and 63 district skill centres under Sardar Patel Employment & Industrial Zones

The Uttar Pradesh state government announced plans to establish 12 mega skill hubs and 63 district skill centres under the 'Sardar Patel Employment & Industrial Zones' to connect youth with employment-oriented skills. The hub-and-spoke model will place mega skill hubs in 12 major cities—Lucknow, Gautam Buddh Nagar, Kanpur, Varanasi, Gorakhpur, Agra, Meerut, Saharanpur, Jhansi, Bareilly, Moradabad, and Ghaziabad—with 63 district skill centres acting as spokes to ensure district-level training. The initiative integrates skilling with industrial development, involves private sector participation, and will be supported by Viability Gap Funding for the first five years. Modern infrastructure and facilities such as electricity, water, roads, internet, security, housing, sports, and recreational amenities will be developed, alongside Startup Support Centres, Placement Agencies, and Research and Design Centres.