Jagriti Yatra: Rekindling the entreprenuerial spark in Delhi

Rudy noted that while the total skilled work was 75 per cent in Germany and 80 per cent in Japan it is merely 2 per cent in India.

After travelling for more than 6,500 km across India, the participants of Jagriti Yatra had a halt at the capital’s IIT campus on Monday afternoon. ‘Celebrate the entrepreneur’ was the motto of the event hosted by the engineering college, which saw the participation by 450 young entrepreneurs who are on a journey of rural India to learn how local businesses work.

The entrepreneurs, on the last leg of their journey, were addressed by YS Chowdary, minister of science and technology and Rajiv Pratap Rudy, Minister of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship. Other than the ministers, Kiran Bedi, an ex-participant of the Yatra herself, also joined the event to talk about how the experience helped her strengthen her leadership skills.

Chowdary took the audience back to 28 years, when he started working as an entrepreneur in his own car workshop. “My father told me to put up sign and repair anything that was wrong with a vehicle. I valued that education,” he said, advising the budding entrepreneurs to remember that no experience is wasted. At the event he stressed on how there was no need to reinvent the wheel, but innovate on existing platforms to make most of today’s opportunities. “There are a lot of opportunities for social and commercial entrepreneurship today. Make use of them. I understand most of you have just graduated and are trying to figure out your way next. Pay attention to the satisfaction index. Money is a by-product, don’t let it become a means,” he added.

Rudy said he was immensely encouraged by the work of the Jagriti Yatra that has churned out close to five hundred young entrepreneurs each year for the last seven years. He noted that while the total skilled work was 75 per cent in Germany and 80 per cent in Japan it is merely 2 per cent in India. “So the urgent need is skill development. And entrepreneurs are the solution that can develop a swift employment force effectively.”