UP Budget 2026-27: From schools to startups, what's in it for young minds?

In the Budget for the financial year 2026–27 presented on Wednesday, the Uttar Pradesh government has placed strong emphasis on youth empowerment, skill development, and employment generation. The Finance Minister of the state, Suresh Khanna, highlighted several major initiatives aimed at strengthening the state’s young workforce.

9.25 lakh youth trained under Skill Development Mission

Under the Uttar Pradesh Skill Development Mission, 9.25 lakh youth have been trained and certified in various short-term training programmes over the past five years. Out of these, 4.22 lakh young people have been successfully placed in reputed companies, reflecting the government’s focus on employment-oriented training.

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Free coaching for 23,000 students under Abhyudaya Yojana

The Mukhyamantri Abhyudaya Yojana is currently providing free coaching to more than 23,000 students through 163 Abhyudaya centres operating across the state. The scheme aims to help youth prepare for competitive examinations without a financial burden.

Fellowship programme in 108 aspirational blocks

To ensure youth participation in governance and policy implementation, the Mukhyamantri Fellowship Programme is being run in 108 aspirational development blocks. The programme allows young professionals to contribute directly to development initiatives at the grassroots level.

Digital empowerment and sports promotion for youth

Under the Swami Vivekananda Yuva Sashaktikaran Yojana, a total of 49.86 lakh tablets and smartphones have been distributed free of cost so far, promoting digital empowerment among students. Additionally, sports equipment has been provided to 90,000 Mangal Dals across the state to encourage youth participation in sports and community activities.

Employment generation alongside infrastructure growth

The Finance Minister emphasised that both capital investment and infrastructure development constitute vital components which drive economic growth, while creating new job opportunities and training young people for employment also remain essential.

The Uttar Pradesh government has undertaken important initiatives which support both job creation and professional training throughout the entire state. The police department has added more than 2,19,000 new staff members since 2017 while promoting 1,58,000 existing staff members.

The police department currently provides training for 60,244 newly recruited constables while continuing its search for 83,122 non-gazetted personnel.

The Mission Employment program has resulted in government secondary schools hiring 1,939 speakers, 6,808 assistant teachers, and 219 principals who made up 8,966 new appointments.

Support for young entrepreneurs

The Mukhyamantri Yuva Udyami Vikas Abhiyan scheme provides interest-free and guarantee-free loans to youth for establishing micro-enterprises, which has an annual target to create 100,000 new micro-businesses, which can be increased at any required time.

Employment through MNREGA

The government has achieved 20.19 crore man-days through the MNREGA program as of January 13, 2026, which surpassed its goal of 20 crore man-days, while the program employed 47.11 lakh families, which marks the highest number of beneficiaries nationwide.

What UP Budget 2026 hold for the education sector?

The state has proposed Rs 77,622 crore for basic education. Under a new initiative, all students from classes 1 to 8 in government schools will receive free uniforms, school bags, shoes, socks, and stationery, with an allocation of Rs 650 crore.

Modern Chief Minister Model Composite Schools are being established in all 75 districts, and one school in each district is being developed as a Chief Minister Abhyuday School. A new plan to establish residential girls’ schools in blocks without Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalayas has been proposed with an allocation of Rs 580 crore.

A cashless medical facility for teachers and staff in government schools, including contract and honorarium-based employees, is being introduced with a proposed allocation of Rs 358 crore.

Under the Samagra Shiksha scheme, all primary schools will be developed as smart schools, with Rs 300 crore allocated. An additional Rs 300 crore is proposed for renovation and safety improvements in aided private schools that fail safety audits.

Secondary education developments

For secondary education, Rs 22,167 crore has been proposed, which is a 15 per cent increase over the previous year.

Better infrastructure in government and aided secondary schools is planned, with Rs 520 crore for government schools and Rs 10 crore for aided schools. Scholarships worth Rs 20 crore have been allocated for students of government Sanskrit schools.

A Dream Skill CAB Cluster is being set up in government secondary schools with an allocation of Rs 150 crore, and cashless medical facilities for teachers in aided secondary schools will be implemented with Rs 89 crore.

The first military school in Purvanchal, and the second in the state, has been established and started operations in Gorakhpur.

Higher education initiatives

For higher education, approximately Rs 6,591 crore has been proposed, which is 7 per cent higher than the previous year.

The Rani Laxmi Bai Scooty Scheme will provide scooters to meritorious female students with an allocation of Rs 400 crore, and the Chief Minister Apprenticeship Incentive Scheme has been allocated Rs 40 crore.

New universities are being established: Maa Vindhyavasini University, Mirzapur (Rs 50 crore), Guru Jambheshwar University, Moradabad (Rs 50 crore), Maa Pateshwari University, Balrampur (Rs 50 crore), Swami Shukdevanand University, Shahjahanpur (Rs 21 crore), and Kashi Naresh University, Bhadohi (Rs 21 crore).

Additionally, a student mental health and welfare policy is being introduced in higher education institutions with an allocation of Rs 14.5 crore.

Technical education and polytechnic development

For technical education, the budget has proposed Rs 2,365 crore, reflecting a 72 per cent increase over the previous year.

Training is provided in 195 diploma-level institutions, and 23 government polytechnics are under construction. Rs 714 crore has been allocated to establish advanced technology and excellence centres in government polytechnics.

A total of 251 smart classrooms have been established in polytechnics, with 143 more under construction. An additional Rs 254 crore is proposed for upgrading and developing polytechnic infrastructure, and Rs 50 crore for establishing new polytechnics.

Scholarship allocations for students

The government has also proposed financial provisions for scholarships. An allocation of Rs 977 crore has been proposed for pre-matric and post-matric scholarships for Scheduled Caste students. Similarly, Rs 950 crore has been proposed for pre-matric and post-matric scholarship schemes for students belonging to the general category.

Expansion of skill training infrastructure across the state

The government plans to expand the capacity of skill development training centres and establish new centres across the state. Skill enhancement programmes will be implemented in mission mode, ensuring large-scale, employment-oriented training. Public-private partnership (PPP) mode skill development and job placement centres will also be set up in various districts.

Separate skill development centres for women

To increase women’s participation in the workforce, separate skill development centres for women will be established, ensuring greater inclusion and employment opportunities.