Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday, June 19, 2026, highlighted the Prime Minister Viksit Bharat Rozgar Yojana, stating that industries offering first jobs to young people feel the full weight of the government standing behind them — and that this changes their outlook on hiring youth altogether.

Posting in Hindi, Modi said: 'Prime Minister Viksit Bharat Rozgar Yojana se hamare yuva sathiyon ko pehli naukri dene wale udyogon ko bhi lagta hai ki yuvaon ke peeche poori sarkar khadi hai.' ('Through the Prime Minister Viksit Bharat Rozgar Yojana, the industries that give our young friends their first job also feel that the entire government stands behind the youth. This changes their perspective too.')

Context

The Prime Minister Viksit Bharat Rozgar Yojana is designed to incentivise private employers to bring young, first-time jobseekers into the formal workforce. By signalling government backing, the scheme aims to reduce the perceived risk for employers who might otherwise hesitate to hire inexperienced candidates. The post was accompanied by a video, suggesting the communication is part of a broader outreach push.

The scheme is linked to the government's overarching Viksit Bharat vision — a roadmap for transforming India into a developed nation by 2047. Employment generation, particularly for first-time entrants, has been positioned as a cornerstone of that ambition.

Policy Backdrop

The current scheme fits within a lineage of employer-incentive programmes that successive BJP-led governments have pursued since 2014. The Pradhan Mantri Rojgar Protsahan Yojana, launched in 2016, reimbursed employers' contributions to the Employees' Provident Fund (EPF) for every new hire, directly lowering the cost of formalising workers. The Skill India Mission, announced in 2015, sought to train millions of young Indians in industry-relevant skills to improve their employability.

Together, these initiatives reflect a supply-side philosophy: make hiring youth cheaper and less risky for employers, so that formal job creation accelerates. The Viksit Bharat Rozgar Yojana extends that logic by adding an explicit 'government as guarantor' framing to employer confidence.

Stakeholders and Impact

The scheme's two primary stakeholders are young first-time jobseekers and private sector employers, particularly small and medium enterprises that tend to be most risk-averse when hiring inexperienced workers. For youth, formal employment brings access to social security, structured wages, and career progression. For employers, the government's backing — whether through wage subsidies, EPF support, or other incentives — can tip the decision in favour of onboarding fresh talent.

The broader economy also stands to benefit: higher formal employment rates reduce the pressure on the Periodic Labour Force Survey unemployment figures, which remain a closely watched indicator of the government's economic performance ahead of each budget cycle.

What's Next

Attention will now turn to the next parliamentary budget session, where funding allocations for the Viksit Bharat Rozgar Yojana are expected to come under scrutiny. Quarterly employment data releases will serve as an early benchmark for whether the scheme is moving the needle on formal youth hiring. The government's ability to demonstrate measurable outcomes — jobs created, employers enrolled, sectors covered — will determine how the scheme is received by opposition benches and independent economists alike.