A Rural Self-Employment Training Institute giving rural youth one to six week courses, with food and lodging covered.
Cooch Behar disburses ₹39,117 in small business loans per lakh population. The district trains 153.8 youth per lakh under short-term skilling, behind the typical district. The Rural Self Employment Training Institute prepares rural youth to use credit like this to start their own enterprise.
75% of registered enterprises are in services while 25% are in manufacturing. Only 2% of employment is in small and medium enterprises. 78% of school-age children are enrolled in higher secondary school (classes 9–12).
In Cooch Behar, which ranks 13 of 23 in West Bengal for youth opportunity, the overall opportunity score is 44.3 out of 100. The district runs ahead of the national picture on self-employed workers at 37.3%, while it lags on young people in the labour force aged 15 to 29 at 42.3%. On skilling trainees who get certified at 95.4% and women-owned enterprises at 11.2%, it sits close to the national mark.