Lucknow, Nov 4 : Uttar Pradesh has found place among top five states of the country for providing employment under the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) during Corona pandemic. In a recent report of Reserve Bank of India (RBI), Uttar Pradesh has secured a place ahead of Karnataka, Rajasthan, Delhi, Haryana and Telangana in the list of top 10 states. The states ahead of Uttar Pradesh are Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra. "The Uttar Pradesh government not only managed the return of about 40 lakh migrants from all over the country but also took up the onerous task of providing them employment," the government spokesman said. "In a first, the state government did skill mapping of about 20 lakh migrant labourers/workers to enable them get job as per their skill set," he added. The state government also signed MoUs with various industries for creation of 11 Lakh jobs within a year. While FICCI and IIA will account for three lakh jobs each, realtors' body NARDCO and the Laghu Udyog Bharti have agreed to provide jobs to 2.5 each to migrant labourers. The state government set up new MSME units and is facilitating the distribution of loans to entrepreneurs for this. A new portal 'Sathi' was also launched to help entrepreneurs set up new units. The government also plans to set up 1000 new units across the state in its efforts to generate more employment and also help people learn entrepreneurial skills, the spokesman said. As many as 90 lakh MSMs are functional in the state and the sector has been projected as the new growth engine for economic development of the state. The ambitious scheme of One District One Product (ODOP) under MSME in UP has emerged as a game changer in the times of the pandemic. Under ODOP, the products of 75 districts are being promoted and sold nationally and internationally on online platforms like Amazon and Flipkart. As a result, the small districts like Jaunpur, Etah, Pilibhit, Mirzapur and Pratapgarh have become centres for employment due to successful implementation of ODOP. /IANS