Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on 15 August 2025 unveiled a new Youth Policy at the Independence Day ceremony held at Vidhan Bhawan, Lucknow, pledging an integrated push to strengthen skills, foster innovation and expand employment prospects for the state's young population. Addressing a gathering that included senior officials, public representatives and families of martyrs, Yogi declared that Uttar Pradesh had shed its 'Bimaru' tag and was now functioning as a 'growth engine of the national economy'.

What the Youth Policy Promises

The new policy, Yogi said, would adopt an integrated approach to equip every young person with skills, nurture entrepreneurship and guarantee employment pathways. CM Yuva Udyami Yojana — which provides interest-free and collateral-free loans — was cited as a flagship instrument to encourage self-employment among youth.

The Chief Minister said rapid strides were being made in emerging sectors including Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, semiconductors, data centres, defence manufacturing, cybersecurity, robotics, electric vehicles, agritech, fintech, deep tech and med-tech — all aimed at preparing Gen-Z and Gen-Alpha for a changing employment landscape. He added that Centres of Excellence and other institutions would provide platforms for young innovators.

Nine Years of Claimed Transformation

Yogi said Uttar Pradesh had undergone a significant shift over the past nine years across law and order, governance, infrastructure, investment, employment and social welfare. The state, he said, had moved from being described as 'updrav pradesh' (state of unrest) to 'utsav pradesh' (state of celebration).

Key figures cited by the Chief Minister: the state's budget and economy have tripled in size; per capita income has increased threefold; women's contribution to the workforce has risen threefold; the school dropout rate has fallen from 19 per cent to 3 per cent; and six crore people have been lifted out of multidimensional poverty. Investment proposals worth more than ₹50 lakh crore have been received, generating employment and self-employment opportunities for more than 65 lakh youths, according to the Chief Minister.

More than nine lakh young people have secured government jobs through transparent recruitment processes over the last nine years, while more than four crore employment and self-employment opportunities have been created in the state, he said. The number of large-scale industries has increased two-and-a-half times; the state now hosts 96 lakh MSME units, more than 32,000 large industries and over 22,000 startups.

Crackdown on Mafia, Push for Women and Farmers

The Chief Minister said the government had taken stringent action against the 'cheating mafia' and 'recruitment mafia', ensuring fairer access to education and jobs. He said Uttar Pradesh was moving away from the era of 'One District-One Mafia' towards development-oriented models such as 'One District-One Product', 'One District-One Medical College' and 'One Division-One State University'.

On women's empowerment, Yogi said women's participation in startups had reached 50 per cent, while their representation in panchayats and the police force had also grown. All 18 cities — including 17 municipal corporations and Gautam Buddha Nagar — have been integrated into the Safe City project. Five phases of Mission Shakti have been completed, with a Mission Shakti Kendra now operational at every police station in the state.

For farmers, Yogi said the agricultural growth rate had risen from 8 per cent to 18 per cent over nine years. An additional 24 lakh hectares of land have been brought under irrigation, and free electricity is being provided to 16 lakh farmers operating private tube wells. More than three crore farmers have received payments under the PM Kisan Samman Nidhi scheme.

Heritage, Tourism and Environment

Yogi said Uttar Pradesh's cultural and spiritual heritage was being actively preserved and linked to employment. Sacred sites including Ayodhya, Kashi, Mathura-Vrindavan, Prayagraj and Buddhist heritage sites such as Sarnath — recently included in the UNESCO World Heritage List — are being developed. In 2025, more than 156 crore tourists visited Uttar Pradesh, according to the Chief Minister.

On the environment, Yogi said more than 35 crore saplings were planted in a single day under the 'Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam' campaign. All municipal corporations, including Ayodhya, are being developed as solar cities.

Tribute to Martyrs and Freedom Fighters

The Chief Minister paid homage to freedom fighters including Mahatma Gandhi, Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, Dr Bhimrao Ambedkar and Dr Rajendra Prasad, as well as Uttar Pradesh's own revolutionary legacy — from Mangal Pandey and Rani Lakshmibai to Chandrashekhar Azad and Pandit Ram Prasad Bismil.

He also paid tribute to UP Police Special Task Force Inspector Sunil Kumar, who was posthumously awarded the Kirti Chakra after confronting and neutralising four criminals in an encounter in Shamli before succumbing to injuries sustained in the operation.

As Uttar Pradesh marks nine years of what the Chief Minister described as transformative governance, the Youth Policy now stands as the next stated milestone — its implementation and measurable outcomes will determine whether the promise translates into ground-level change.