Under the Uttar Pradesh government’s ambitious Zero Poverty campaign, work is progressing rapidly to ensure that poor and deprived families are covered under all eligible government welfare schemes.
According to figures reviewed under the campaign, officials said that 4,25,101 families (34 per cent) in the state have already been covered under all eligible schemes. The state government believes that once the targets under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana are achieved, this figure will increase by around 30 per cent, providing permanent benefits to a large number of poor families.
In the first phase of the campaign, eight major schemes have been included: the Ration Card Scheme, Nirashrit Mahila Pension Scheme, Shramik (BOCW) Card, Ayushman Bharat, Divyang Pension Scheme, Vriddhavastha Pension Scheme, Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi, and the Pradhan Mantri/Mukhyamantri Awas Yojana. Among these, achievements of 97 per cent have been recorded in ration card coverage, 98 per cent in the Nirashrit Mahila Pension Scheme, 95 per cent in the Shramik Card Scheme, and 92 per cent in the Ayushman Bharat Scheme. Significant work still remains to be done under the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi and the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana.
In the second phase, schemes including the Shauchalay Sahayata Yojana, Self-Help Groups (SHGs), school enrolment, Har Ghar Nal Se Jal, Mukhyamantri Kanya Sumangala Yojana, Bal Seva Yojana, Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana, and electricity connections have been included. Achievements of 100 per cent have been recorded in the Shauchalay Sahayata Scheme, Self-Help Groups, and school enrolment, while work under the remaining schemes is progressing steadily.
In the district rankings for scheme saturation, Hathras ranks first in the state with an achievement of 78 per cent. It is followed by Ghaziabad, Shamli, Muzaffarnagar, Badaun, Amroha, Maharajganj, Meerut, Baghpat and Gorakhpur among the top 10 districts. Agra, Mau, Prayagraj, Banda, Ballia, Fatehpur, Firozabad, Shravasti, Bahraich and Unnao are among the lowest-performing districts, with Unnao ranking last.
A major focus of the campaign is also to connect youth with skill development and employment. Around 19 lakh youth in the 18–35 age group have been identified across the state.
So far, 43,647 youth have been trained, 1,258 are currently undergoing training, and 1,14,715 have been identified for skill development programmes. As many as 2,691 trained youth have secured employment through the Uttar Pradesh Skill Development Mission (UPSDM), while 888 have been placed through Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs).
Thousands of young people are also benefiting from schemes such as the Mukhyamantri Yuva Udyami Yojana, Vishwakarma Shram Samman Yojana, Mukhyamantri Yuva Swarozgar Yojana, and the One District One Product (ODOP) programme. The government’s objective is to provide youth with opportunities for self-employment and entrepreneurship alongside salaried jobs.
The participation of social organisations and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) institutions has also been expanded under the Zero Poverty campaign. Under agreements signed with various organisations, work will be undertaken in areas such as livelihood development, skill training, employment, healthcare services, eye examinations, cataract surgeries, TB eradication, nutrition kits, school kits, and the provision of assistive devices for persons with disabilities.
The government’s objective is to make every eligible family self-reliant by lifting them out of poverty through government welfare schemes and social support.