Latest news with #PMKVY
Business Standard
3 hours ago
- Business
- Business Standard
Vivek Harivyasi on Skilling Revolution 3.0 - Building India's Workforce for AI, EVs, and Beyond
India is sitting on a powder keg — the world's largest young population. We call it a demographic dividend, and on paper, it's an unparalleled advantage, a human powerhouse capable of propelling us to the top of the global economy. But here's the uncomfortable truth: without equipping these colossal numbers with the right skills for tomorrow's economy, this dividend won't just stagnate; it could spiral into a demographic disaster. We've seen it happen elsewhere, and we simply cannot afford it. This isn't about incremental change; it's about national survival and asserting our rightful place on the global stage. That's why what the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) is driving with the Skill India Mission (SIM) isn't just an initiative — it's an existential necessity. We are long past polite reforms and cosmetic tweaks. This revolution demands an aggressive, uncompromising alignment of our educational and vocational systems with the demands of the 21st century. It's about pushing our youth into the deep end of the digital pool, ready or not, and ensuring they can swim. The push into Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning (ML), Robotics, Electric Vehicles (EVs), and Data Centres isn't optional anymore; it's mandatory. These aren't just buzzwords muttered in tech conferences; they are the very DNA of the next global economic order. Fail to master them, and we risk being left behind in a race where the winners will define the future. The numbers, for once, back this urgency. Under the Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY), over 200 new-age job roles have been aligned with Industry 4.0 demands. By June 30, 2025, 4,32,712 candidates have been trained in these cutting-edge areas. Complementing this, the National Apprenticeship Promotion Scheme (NAPS) has brought in 31,750 candidates for hands-on experience in 69 crucial, emerging trades. This is about application, not just theory — about making sure skills learned in classrooms are stress-tested in real-world work environments. Our foundational institutions, the ITIs and NSTIs, are also getting the overhaul they desperately needed. With 31 new-age courses introduced, 52,882 individuals have been trained between 2022 and 2024. The Directorate General of Training (DGT) is forging partnerships with global industry leaders like IBM, CISCO, and Microsoft — ensuring that our training is not just academic but tuned to what employers actually want. This is how you create a workforce that doesn't just have certificates but has the capability to deliver from day one. We're also seeing the rise of specialized talent hubs like the Indian Institute of Skills (IIS) in Ahmedabad and Mumbai. Built on a public-private partnership model, these institutes are laser-focused on producing an industry-ready talent pool. They are not waiting for the market to change — they are anticipating the change and training ahead of time. And if you doubt whether this training really leads to jobs, the track record is telling. Earlier phases of PMKVY (1.0 to 3.0) alone placed 24.38 lakh candidates. The real shift with PMKVY 4.0 is its move beyond basic placements. It's about empowering candidates with diverse career paths, from traditional employment to entrepreneurship, giving them genuine choice and control over their professional futures. The Skill India Digital Hub (SIDH) is the nerve centre that connects all these moving parts. This unified platform integrates skills, education, employment, and entrepreneurship in one place. Think of it as a smart, national talent registry, matching skilled youth with employers, apprenticeships, and opportunities across India. It's not just a database — it's an engine for data-driven skilling. To make sure these digital matches turn into real jobs, on-the-ground efforts remain vital. Rozgar Melas and Pradhan Mantri National Apprenticeship Melas (PMNAMs) continue to create direct interfaces between job seekers and employers — the kind of face-to-face conversations that can seal opportunities in minutes. As Shri Jayant Chaudhary from MSDE told the Rajya Sabha, this is not just a set of disconnected policies or isolated targets. It's a national mission — a deliberate, aggressive push to weaponize our youth's potential. Skilling Revolution 3.0 isn't just about how many are trained or how many courses are launched. It's about determining whether India will emerge as a global leader in the digital, manufacturing, and green economies, or collapse under the sheer weight of unfulfilled promise.
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Business Standard
10-08-2025
- Business
- Business Standard
House panel urges MSDE to align skill schemes with local industry needs
The parliamentary standing committee on skill development has urged the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) to prioritise aligning training programmes with the 'demand of the local needs for skills'. In its latest report, the panel also called for the 'early completion and publication' of skill gap reports to address workforce deficiencies, improve individual capabilities, and enhance employability by helping workers adapt to changing demands. 'The committee attaches priority to aligning skill development programmes with the demand of the region/local needs for skills and urges the ministry for early completion and publication of the report so that skill gaps are addressed, individual skills improved and adaptation to changes facilitated, thereby enhancing employability,' the report noted. The committee, headed by Basavaraj Bommai, submitted its report to Parliament on Wednesday. Concerns over PMKVY implementation Earlier, while reviewing the government's flagship Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY), the panel highlighted a disconnect between the National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) and industry. It said that training often fails to reflect actual local demand for skills, leading to a mismatch between the programme's output and local economic needs. 'The committee therefore desired the ministry to undertake skill gap assessments on a regular basis and enhance the programme's effectiveness by aligning PMKVY with the industry to match the local economic needs for making skill training programmes employable and creating a skills ecosystem with appropriate governance to improve individual skills and adapt to changes,' the report said. Skill gap study and state engagement The skill ministry informed the panel it is conducting a national-level skill gap study through the National Council of Applied Economic Research (NCAER) under the Skill Acquisition and Knowledge Awareness for Livelihood Promotion (SANKALP) scheme. It is also engaging with states, central ministries and departments, and sector skill councils (SSCs) to identify skill gaps and allocate PMKVY 4.0 targets accordingly. 'The prevalence of skill gaps and underutilisation of funds indicate that the awareness programme regarding the scheme has not reached the grassroots level,' the committee noted. Delays in PM Vishwakarma rollout The panel expressed concern over delays in implementing the PM Vishwakarma scheme in Tamil Nadu and West Bengal, which have yet to set up monitoring and district implementation committees. 'The committee expresses concern and urges the ministry to pursue these states vigorously so that such committees are constituted expeditiously and the PM Vishwakarma Scheme is made applicable in all the States/UTs at the earliest,' the report said.
Hans India
06-08-2025
- Business
- Hans India
Youth Must Utilize Government Schemes to Develop Skills: Khalid Naveed
Mahbubnagar: Social activist Khalid Naveed has urged unemployed Muslim youth to take full advantage of government skill development schemes to secure livelihoods and contribute to community progress. Highlighting how youth are being deprived of employment due to lack of proper skills, Naveed said particularly youth from Muslim community, despite constituting over 200 million citizens, continues to face economic exclusion due to limited access to vocational training, unorganized manufacturing sectors, and social stigmas. 'Skill development is the key to breaking this cycle,' he stressed. Government initiatives such as Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY), Jan Shikshan Sansthan (JSS), and Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Grameen Kaushalya Yojana (DDU-GKY) are offering free courses with placement assistance in trades like mobile repair, digital marketing, electrical work, refrigeration servicing, and para-medical services. 'These certifications enhance employability and restore dignity, especially for young men who might otherwise remain unemployed or in low-paying jobs,' Naveed noted. He highlighted the growing participation of Muslim women, with JSS centres training them in fashion design, office management, beautician work, and soft skills. 'Women once confined to domestic roles are now becoming income earners and even employers,' he said, citing Hyderabad's cooperatives of women supplying garments to e-commerce platforms. Naveed emphasized that skilled youth are also emerging as entrepreneurs, aligning with Start-up India and Make in India missions. However, he cautioned that language barriers, digital illiteracy, and social biases must be addressed through culturally relevant outreach. 'Government schemes are opportunities waiting to be seized,' stressed Naveed, urging youth to take advantage of various state and Central government skill development schemes.
The Print
05-08-2025
- Business
- The Print
Where is Skill India money going? It's a Rs 48,000 crore mystery
The 'skilling' being done is not at all at par with the funds being pumped in. Which is why we must dive deeper into this labyrinth and analyse the top skill development and employment schemes—together constituting about Rs 48,000 crore of the total allocation. This contradiction compels us to ask hard questions. Where is the money going? Who is designing the curriculum? Who are the trainers? Are these training institutes credible, or just another cog in the wheel of fund misappropriation and political patronage? Each year, the government allocates thousands of crores to skilling initiatives, projecting them as the backbone of India's growth story. Yet the paradox remains. From education to healthcare to manufacturing, all industries continue to face an acute shortage of skilled manpower, even as unemployment rises. Despite an avalanche of policies, programmes, courses, and certifications, the ground reality is different—one of missed opportunities and systemic failures. Also Read: No one should have to choose between a roof and two meals. But India's migrants do, every day Skilling or false hope through PMKVY? The flagship skilling scheme, Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY), launched on 15 July 2015, has a total fund allocation of Rs 10,570.18 crore. Of this, only Rs 9,803.23 crore was utilised as of March 2024, leaving Rs 766.95 crore unspent and funds mismanaged. The scheme provides skills through 36 Sector Skill Councils such as Aviation, Agriculture, and Beauty. But the types of skills being imparted are ambiguous and often lead to low job satisfaction. Media reports show that many candidates trained under PMKVY were offered dismal salaries or ended up in unskilled jobs despite holding certificates. One X user, Ashish Rathi, wrote on the platform: 'My cousin was promised a PMKVY course with job placement in Gurugram. He trained for 15 days, got a certificate and never heard from them again. This is no skilling but false hope!' Official data shows that there was a drastic 93 per cent drop in the number of candidates trained, from 1.1 crore in Phase 2 to 7.37 lakh in Phase 3, and further down to 5.43 lakh in Phase 4. Has the government exaggerated the numbers in Phase 2, which shows a 553 per cent jump from Phase 1? Another concerning thing is the certificate inflation created by the huge number of issuances, while no significant number of placements were done. The placement rate fell from 2.53 lakh (12.7 per cent) in 2016 to a scanty 2,042 (0.37 per cent) in PMKVY 4.0. The Sharada Prasad Committee (2016) pointed out that most of the PMKVY training was short-term in duration—some even less than 10 days—with no proper recognition of the prior learning of the candidate. How can a person learn a skill effectively in that short period of time? Missing records and results Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Grameen Kaushalya Yojana (DDU-GKY) was launched in September 2014 to provide high-quality training in more than 250 courses such as Beauty Therapist, Export Assistant, Mason Tiling, and Baking Technician, among others. But there is no transparency in the curriculum framework or in the qualifications of the trainers. The Pratigya Skill Development Centre in Delhi, despite training over 250 students, has reportedly only been able to show 27 per cent placements officially due to cash-based salary payments from employers, making it impossible to upload verifiable proof. Expenditure, according to Revised Estimates (RE) till 2022, is about Rs 9,111 crore. Though 16,90,046 people were trained and 10,97,265 candidates (65 per cent) were placed till date (in 11 years), this suggests the government has failed to create proper awareness among the rural public—revealing a sense of flippancy. An individual, Akash Dawar, recounted, 'My brother was enrolled under DDU-GKY for a retail course in UP. He got a job in a different city, left home, only to find there was no work, just unpaid training. He came back disillusioned and unemployed.' Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana—comprising the National Rural Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NRLM) and the National Urban Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NULM), launched in 2011 and 2013 respectively—was allocated a total of Rs 4,351 crore, aimed at empowering poor families through skill training and credit facilities. But there is no data regarding what kind of skills are being provided to rural women or street vendors. Has it really achieved its goal? It is heard that a few people misuse SHG credit with the help of corrupt officials. Asha, a worker, recounted, 'Our SHG took loans under NRLM and was promised tailoring training. The trainer came twice in a month and then disappeared. We're still paying EMIs.' Also Read: RBI's new gold loan guidelines could push borrowers back to moneylenders A betrayal of trust The National Apprenticeship Promotion Scheme (NAPS), launched in 2016 to empower youth via apprenticeship, has also been a major failure. The government has failed to provide state-wise data of the beneficiaries, and there is no guarantee of candidates getting proper skills or fair pay. An RTI filed in June 2018 revealed that out of the Rs 10,000 crore allocated for NAPS, only Rs 108 crore had been disbursed to beneficiaries by mid-2020—about 1 per cent utilisation of the total approved budget. NAPS 2.0 (2022–26) has been allotted Rs 1,942 crore, without the government giving any clarity on the outcomes of NAPS 1.0. Statistics paint a grim picture. India's youth—its promise, its future—is being left behind. Is this the roadmap to becoming a 'Vishwa Guru'? This is not just bureaucratic or systemic inefficiency, but a betrayal of trust. The government must either bring transparency, accountability, and results to the skilling ecosystem, or have the moral clarity to reallocate these Rs 48,000 crores toward critical areas like public health, education, and sanitation. Because what's at stake is not just money. It's the future of millions of young Indians, and the very credibility of India's development narrative. Karti P Chidambaram is a Member of Parliament for Sivaganga, and a Member of the All India Congress Committee. His X handle is @KartiPC. Views are personal. (Edited by Asavari Singh)
Time of India
04-08-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Less than 15% of youth skilled under government scheme placed
. NEW DELHI: As unemployment continues to be a concern, government data shows that over 1.6 crore youth across India have been trained under the Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY) since 2015, though only about 24.3 lakh secured job placements - less than 15% of the total youth trained. In a written reply to the Lok Sabha, skill development minister Jayant Chaudhary said that while placement tracking was done under the first three phases of PMKVY (2015-2022), the current phase (PMKVY 4.0) focuses more on empowering candidates to pursue varied career paths and provides orientation support through platforms like Skill India Digital Hub. The platform connects trained individuals with potential employers and apprenticeship opportunities, with Rozgar Melas and National Apprenticeship Melas providing additional placement support. However, employment outcomes remain modest. Of the 56.89 lakh certified candidates in Short-Term Training (STT) between 2015 and 2022, only 24.3 lakh were reported placed - around 43%. Analysts say the low employment ratio reflects a continued gap between training curricula and industry requirements. The government acknowledged the need to align skilling with local demand and industry trends and has started district-level skill gap studies and state-specific training programmes. Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like AirSense 11 – Smart tech for deep sleep ResMed Buy Now Undo by Taboola by Taboola To support self-employment, youth are being linked with financial schemes such as PM Mudra Yojana (Rs 35.13 lakh crore sanctioned), PM Vishwakarma (Rs 3,920 crore), and DAY-NULM (Rs 8,775 crore to nearly 9.8 lakh urban poor). Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh lead in both training enrolment and loan assistance. Efforts to improve quality outcomes include training through accredited centres, on-the-job training, the National Credit Framework, and regular third-party evaluations. A third-party assessment of PMKVY 4.0 is currently underway to guide policy corrections. Stay informed with the latest business news, updates on bank holidays and public holidays . Discover stories of India's leading eco-innovators at Ecopreneur Honours 2025
