LUCKNOW, July 16 -- The Uttar Pradesh government has approved the first phase of the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Employment and Industrial Zones (SVPEIZ) project, under which 16 integrated centres linking skill development with industrial growth will be established across the state. Announced on Uttar Pradesh Day earlier this year, the project aims to create employment and industrial hubs offering skill training, entrepreneurship support, employment services and industrial infrastructure. The state has been divided into nine hub-and-spoke zones to align workforce development with regional industrial needs, officials said. Five centres will be developed by the micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME) department, five by the Uttar Pradesh State Industrial Development Authority (UPSIDA), two each by the Uttar Pradesh Expressways Industrial Development Authority (UPEIDA) and the Yamuna Expressway Industrial Development Authority (YEIDA), and one each by the Greater Noida Industrial Development Authority (GNIDA) and the Gorakhpur Industrial Development Authority (GIDA). The nine zones group districts with similar industrial profiles and comprise the Noida-Ghaziabad region, western Uttar Pradesh, Rohilkhand, Agra-Aligarh, Lucknow-Ayodhya, Kanpur-Prayagraj, Bundelkhand-Vindhya, eastern Uttar Pradesh and the Gorakhpur region. Principal secretary (MSME) Shashi Bhushan Lal Sushil said the project was conceived to meet the rising demand for skilled manpower following increased industrial investment in the state. He said the centres would train youth in industry-specific skills while connecting them with employment and self-employment opportunities. Each SVPEIZ centre will house skill development, employment and entrepreneurship support facilities, digital literacy and foreign language training, besides industrial plots and plug-and-play industrial sheds to enable industries to begin operations with minimal lead time.The government also plans to develop multi-storey industrial buildings and flatted factories in areas where land availability is limited. A special purpose vehicle (SPV) will be constituted for each hub, with the lead investor in the region expected to chair it to ensure industry participation in planning and operations. The state government said it studied industrial and skill development models developed by the Tata Group in Gujarat and Maharashtra before finalising the framework for Uttar Pradesh....