A Rural Self-Employment Training Institute giving rural youth one to six week courses, with food and lodging covered.
Darjeeling disburses ₹64,690 in small business loans per lakh population. The district trains 121.9 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.
86% of registered enterprises are in services while 14% are in manufacturing. Only 9% of employment is in small and medium enterprises. 77% of school-age children are enrolled in higher secondary school (classes 9–12).
In Darjeeling, which ranks 3 of 23 in West Bengal for youth opportunity, the overall opportunity score is 52.1 out of 100. It runs ahead of the national picture on self-employed workers at 34.8% and young people in the labour force aged 15 to 29 at 54.6%. On skilling trainees who get certified at 98.6% and women-owned enterprises at 18.1%, it sits close to the national mark.