NEW DELHI: The government’s Startup India campaign aimed at boosting entrepreneurship will get a rural avatar in the soon-to-be-launched Deen Dayal Upadhyay Swaniyojan Yojana The programme being designed by the rural development ministry will be backed by MUDRA Bank loans, innovative credit linkages and self-help groups.The government will also hold discussions with private entities and individuals working in the startup space to map entrepreneurship opportunities.On the lines of the Startup India initiative launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in January, the Swaniyojan Yojana is finalizing its action plan and the incentives it will provide the rural poor looking for self-employment options.“The scheme will provide the basic skill sets required for selfemployment in various fields and thereafter we would provide credit linkages, incubation centres wherever needed,” a senior government official said.The Micro Units Development and Refinance Agency (MUDRA) Bank oversees funding for micro and small enterprises.Socio Economic and Caste Census (SECC) data released in July 2015 showed that a third of India’s rural households are landless and depend on manual labour for an income, highlighting the need for skill development in these areas.The Swaniyojan Yojana will be funded by the existing National Rural Livelihood Mission of the rural development ministry.Some of the skill sets to be provided would be related to driving, plumbing, agriculture, dairy farming, grafting and horticulture among others.“The rural unemployed need not leave their land in search of wage employment if they have entrepreneurial opportunities,” said the official cited above.The rural development ministry is in talks with other government departments including textiles, animal husbandry and food processing to help the rural poor collaborate in setting up businesses across various sectors.The programme to be launched is on the lines of the existing Deen Dayal Upadhyay Grameen Kaushal Yojana (DDUGKY) except its focus won’t be on guaranteed placements but generating livelihood through self-employment.The livelihood programme will provide training for activities ranging from beauty courses and masonry to horticulture and agriculture.