LUCKNOW, Aug. 1 -- The Uttar Pradesh government has set a record target for the 2025-26 financial year under the UP Skill Development Mission. This time, the target-setting process has been made more scientific and technology-based than ever before. For the first time, the Artificial Intelligence (AI) platform was used to conduct an in-depth analysis of industrial demand, available resources, employment potential, and past performance of each district. Based on this assessment, district-wise targets were allocated to training providers, a government spokesperson said. This time, each training provider has been restricted to a maximum of five districts to prevent the dominance of a few institutions and ensure regional balance. Priority has been given to aspirational districts and blocks, which have been fully covered with 100 percent training centres. Last year, residential training accounted for just 1 percent, but this has now been increased to 36 percent, as such training has shown improved student attendance and quality. At the same time, the participation of industrial units has been increased from 3 percent to 47 percent, so that training and better employment can be ensured as per the requirement of the industries. For the first time, targets have been set by assessing the future demand of large industrial projects to be set up in the state with the help of Invest UP. This will make skilled human resources available on time. With the help of chief development officers (CDOs) of the districts, the employability and employment requirements were also analysed. This time short-term courses have also been included in the ITI institutes covered by Tata. To promote inclusive development, a mandatory provision of 33 percent reservation for women and 5 percent for persons with disabilities has been implemented for all training providers. This time, special priority has been given to future-oriented skills such as drone technology, robotics, machine learning, digital technology, content creation, green jobs, and solar energy. In a bid to guide youth towards emerging opportunities, a total of 810 training targets have been allocated to government industrial training institutes as well as specialized institutions like CIPET and UPICO....