KOHIMA — In Nagaland, the Work Population Ratio (WPR) for persons aged 15-25 years old stands at 36.5% during the year 2023-24.

This was informed by Minister of State for Labour and Employment, Sushri Shobha Karandlaje, in her reply to the Lok Sabha on Monday.

As per data, the Work Population Ratio for persons aged 15-25 years old in Nagaland during the year 2022-23 was 38.9%, 31.3% in 2021-22, 21.5% in 2020-21 and 13.9% in 2019-20.

As per the Minister, the Government of India had introduced the UNNATI (Uttar Poorva Transformative Industrialization) scheme on March 9, 2024, to support industries, create employment opportunities, and promote regional development in the North-East region.

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Under the scheme, the incentives provided to the industrial units include Capital Investment Incentive (CII), Capital Interest Subvention (CIS) and Manufacturing and Services linked incentive (MSLI).

She also mentioned that, as of January 31, 2025, 2,109 entities in the north-eastern states have been recognized as startups by DPIIT.

Additionally, to support MSMEs and microfinance sectors, the Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER) provides annual budgetary allocations to NEDFi, offering interest-free loans under the North East Enterprise Development Scheme (NEEDS) with a total allocation of INR 300 crore for 2021-22 to 2025-26.

Further, the Union Cabinet has approved the Employment Linked Incentive (ELI) Scheme to support employment generation, enhance employability and social security across all sectors, with special focus on the manufacturing sector, she added.