UP Tops Nation in Skill Competition Registrations; State-Level Winners Felicitated in Lucknow

Lucknow: Under the leadership of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, the Uttar Pradesh government is continuously taking effective steps to make youth self-reliant, employment-orientated and capable of competing at the global level. In this sequence, a grand felicitation ceremony for the winners of the state-level skill competition, organised under the India Skills Competition 2025-26 by the Uttar Pradesh Skill Development Mission (UPSDM), was held on Wednesday at the Skill Development Mission headquarters in Lucknow. On this occasion, a total of 40 winning participants, who demonstrated excellence across 20 different skill trades, were honoured with awards and certificates.The ceremony was organised under the guidance of the Minister of State (Independent

Charge) for Vocational Education, Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, Kapil Dev Agarwal. The winners were honoured by the Principal Secretary of the Department of Vocational Education, Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, Dr. Hari Om, and Mission Director Pulkit Khare. Two winners from each skill trade were felicitated, who brought laurels to the state through their skills, dedication and hard work.Principal Secretary Dr. Hari Om interacted with the winning participants, learnt about their training experiences, competition journey and future plans and encouraged them. He said that the state government is committed to providing modern, employment-orientated skills in line with global standards to the youth. Such events foster a spirit of healthy competition among young people and provide them opportunities to reach national and international platforms.Mission Director Pulkit Khare said that the state-level skill competition is a powerful platform to recognise the talent of youth, inspiring them to become self-reliant and progress at national and international levels. He informed us that all selected winners will participate in a special boot camp to be organised in Lucknow, where experts will prepare them for the North Regional Skill Competition. Additional Mission Director Priya Singh said that skill development is an effective means of making youth self-reliant, and the mission is continuously striving to provide quality training.It is noteworthy that the World Skills Competition is organised every two years. In 2024, a total of 7,472 participants had registered, whereas for 2026, this number has increased to 109,249, making Uttar Pradesh the state with the highest registrations in the country. In 2024, the state participated in 10 skills, while this year participation has expanded to 20 skills, marking significant progress in the field of skill development. Additionally, whereas earlier the competition was conducted at a single centre, this year 1,270 participants took part across 11 different centres in Lucknow.During the programme, a Social Media Cell was launched to effectively disseminate the mission’s activities to the public at large. An MoU was also exchanged with the National Institute for Entrepreneurship and Small Business Development (NIESBUD) to further strengthen quality training. On this occasion, Director of the Institute of Training of Trainers (ITOT) D.K. Singh, Director of NIESBUD Noida Shivani Dey, Joint Director Mayank Gangwar, Finance Controller Sandeep Kumar, Assistant Directors Dr. M.K. Singh and Dr. Pavitra Tandon, COO of DDU-GKY Ashish Kumar, along with mission officers, staff and officials from various districts were present.