Noida (UP), Jun 29 (PTI) The Uttar Pradesh government is mapping skills of migrant workers who returned to the state during the COVID-19 lockdown and is working to provide them suitable employment opportunities, state Cabinet minister Satish Mahana said on Monday.

Mahana, the Industrial Development minister, also stressed upon the need to develop a connection between the academia, the industry and the government to create an environment for growth in the state.

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He made the remarks during a webinar hosted by Amity University, Noida, where he spoke about the "Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Industry and Agriculture Sector" and shared initiatives being taken by the state government to support farmers, industries and migrant labourers.

Mahana referred to the 'Atmanirbhar Uttar Pradesh Rozgar Abhiyan', launched recently by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, which would benefit over 1.25 crore migrant workers and labourers who lost their jobs due to the lockdown.

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"The (UP) government is mapping skills of migrant labourers and is working on providing them with suitable employment opportunities. The state of UP has an opportunity for the industries to progress fast as it is an era of new industrialization,” Mahana said.

He said there are various initiatives under the 'Atma Nirbhar' mission for the farmers and the agriculture sector, stressing the need for every individual to contribute towards the mission.

He also said the agriculture GDP will "not be impacted" much as sufficient monsoon is expected to hit the country this year and farmers should find opportunities to grow other crops as well beyond their traditional produce.

He added, "The knowledge and research about technology should reach the backward areas and motivate them to go beyond traditional farming.”

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)