Only 17.7% youth under Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana were placed: Govt tells Lok Sabha

NEW DELHI: Since the inception, only 17.7 percent of the Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY) candidates have been placed, a government data revealed. Under PMKVY since 2015, Rs 11,880.50 crore have been allocated, out of which Rs 9,903.83 crore have been utilized, which is 83%.

Responding to a question whether the Government has assessed reasons for the low rate of placement of trained candidates under PMKVY, Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan said, “PMKVY has two components namely Short Term Training (STT) and Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL). Placement opportunities are facilitated to STT certified candidates, while RPL is not linked with placements as it recognized the existing skills of the candidate.

The PMKVY was launched in 2015. As on December 31, 2022, “56.64 lakh candidates have been certified under STT; Out of certified candidates, 24.36 lakh candidates have been reported placed in various sectors across the country which is around 43%,” the minister told the Lok Sabha today.

In order to enhance the placement under the short term training of PMKVY, the last tranche, 30 percent of total payout is disbursed to training providers only on ensuring placement of the candidates. Rozgar Melas are organized to facilitate the placement, he said.

Also read | Over 16,500 teachers found absent in UP govt schools; reveals inspection survey

Due to poor performance of the states, the financial allocation was rationalized from Rs 3,050 crore to approximately Rs 2,419 crore under the state component of the PMKVY 2.0.

“The reason for low performance of States includes delay in release of funds from State’s treasury to SSDM, different payment process followed by States/UTs, delay in submission of the UCs by States/UTs, slow clearance of technical, operational impediment with regard to on-boarding on SMART, SDMS, AEBAS, Skill India Portal etc,” he noted.

Explaining about the steps taken by the government to link training courses, curriculum and practical skills given under PMKVY with industry needs, Dharmendra Pradhan further said: “In order to improve the availability of skilled professional across the country, competency based skill development training aligning with National Skill Qualification Framework (NSQF) is being imparted under the scheme. NSQF-aligned job roles are developed by industry-led Sector Skill Councils (SSCs) covering various sectors.”

Also read | IIT Delhi students ‘manhandled’ during campus festival, admin cancels Guru Randhawa’s Live concert

PM Kaushal Vikas Yojana 4.0

PMKVY 4.0 was announced in the Union Budget 2023. New age courses for Industry 4.0 like coding, AI, robotics, mechatronics, IOT, 3D printing, drones, soft skills, Cloud Computing, etc. are an integral part of training curricula in PMKVY 4.0, the minister said.

“The delivery network of skill training under PMKVY 4.0 is being expanded to include Schools, Colleges, Industrial Training Institutes and vocational infrastructure spread across various Ministries institutions in addition to PMKK, and the empaneled private Training Centers of NSDC,” he added.

In addition, the ministry of skill development and entrepreneurship (MSDE) has proposed to set up 30 Skill India International Centres across different States to skill the youth for international opportunities. Moreover, the ministry has proposed to launch a unified Skill India Digital platform for enabling demand-based formal skilling, linking with employers including MSMEs, and facilitating access to entrepreneurship schemes, Pradhan informed the Parliament.