By OUR STAFF REPORTER
Dehradun, 29 May: The Government of Uttarakhand has taken an initiative to promote entrepreneurship, start-ups, and innovation in higher educational institutions. Under its Devbhoomi Udyamita Yojana (DUY), faculty members from state universities and Government Degree Colleges will be provided orientation training at Entrepreneurship Development Institute of India, (EDII), Ahmedabad. The call for applying to the faculty mentor development programme has been initiated through an office order from the Department of Higher Education, Uttarakhand. Last year, 92 faculty members were trained at EDII and a target of 90+ faculty members is set for this year.
This programme is open to faculty members and principals working in state university campuses and government degree colleges. Interested faculty can register on the Devbhoomi Udyamita Yojana portal (www.duy-heduk.org). During the training, faculty members will gain in-depth knowledge of various aspects of entrepreneurship, equipping them to become effective mentors at their respective colleges.
According to Dr Deepak Kumar Pandey, Assistant Director, Department of Higher Education, under the provisions of the National Education Policy 2020, a credit-based entrepreneurship curriculum will be implemented from this (2024-25) session. After completing the training, faculty members will receive a certificate and will be registered as entrepreneurship mentors on the Devbhoomi Udyamita Yojana dashboard so that they may help the students equip themselves with entrepreneurial skills.
He adds that this training will help faculty mentors play a crucial role in students emerging as entrepreneurs, as they will be the immediate contact for students to discuss their problems. Encouraged with the previous experience of development of many enterprises by the students, he hopes that EDP starting this session will help promote more entrepreneurs this year.
According to the office order, accommodation and food to the participants will be provided by the Entrepreneurship Development Institute of India, Ahmedabad. This programme will be held in three cohorts on consecutive dates decided by the Department.
This initiative is a significant effort to promote entrepreneurship and innovation in the state’s higher educational institutions, helping the youth of Uttarakhand to realise their entrepreneurial dreams.
DUY aims at providing entrepreneurial skill development and self-employment opportunities to the youth across the state. Through this scheme, entrepreneurship training will be provided to youth to develop their entrepreneurial skills and become self-reliant.
Under the Devbhoomi Udyamita Yojana, youth who are exploring livelihood opportunities, as well as marginalised and differently abled communities are targeted. These benefits may include financial support in the form of loans and grants to establish and run their own enterprises. The scheme aims to improve the capacity and skills of the youth and provide them with the necessary training to become successful entrepreneurs, thereby contributing to economic development in the state.
