In less than two years of its launch, Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY) (2016-20), the flagship scheme of the Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship (MSDE) has taken multi-fold strides. The scheme has achieved a landmark milestone of 3,16,671 placements (as on February 2018). With nearly 55 per cent successful placements, the Short-Term Training Program (STT) under PMKVY (2016-20) is an effective, refined and demand-driven endeavour, with an over-riding focus on quality of training.
Under the STT program, over 13 lakh candidates have been trained, of these over 9 lakhs have been certified till February 2018. Placements have been facilitated for 5.98 lakh candidates who were certified by the end of November 2017. Placements for the latter batches who were certified post November 2017 are currently underway.
Placements under PMKVY (2016-2020) are categorized into wage and self-employment. Approximately 76 per cent of the candidates have been placed in wage employment and 24 per cent placed in self-employment/ entrepreneurship. 80 per cent of the candidates placed in wage employment across various sectors i.e. Electronics and Hardware, Apparel, Beauty and Wellness, Agriculture, Retail, Logistics, Leather, Telecom, Security, Textiles and Handlooms.
Commenting on the progress of the scheme, Rajesh Agrawal, Joint Secretary & CVO, Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) said, “PMKVY (2016-2020) scheme is closely aligned with the industry requirement of a job-ready workforce. Embarking on the Skill India Mission, our endeavour has been to provide superlative quality training in industry relevant job role. The Skill India Mission also promotes entrepreneurship, which is further supported by Mudra Loans and other financial provisions.”
“Self-employed candidates are encouraged and supported in availing Mudra Loans through the UdyamiMitra Portal. Currently more than 10,000 candidates have applied for these loans”, Mr. Agrawal further added.
Jayant Krishna, ED & COO, National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) commented, “NSDC is working collaboratively with its training providers, sector skill councils and industry for creating and deploying good and quality trained resources, who could cater to the evolving demands of the organisations. Our initiatives such as integrations with organisations, syndication with portals such National Career Service, creation of Labour Market Information System, organizing job fairs (Rozgar Melas) and more, are intended to match demand with supply.”
NSDC is continuously working towards accomplishing the objectives laid down under Skill India Mission by training and facilitating employment for skilled manpower across leading organisations across the country, namely Tata Motors, Pay TM, Honda Motorcycle & Scooter, Accenture, PVR Cinemas, Bata India, G4S Secure Solutions, Lemon Tree Hotels, L&T, Tata Sky, Samsung, Volkswagen, SBI Life etc.
The PMKVY (2016-20), launched in November 2016 with an outlay of Rs. 12,000 crores, is the biggest training and certification program of the Government of India. It aims to skill one crore youth by 2020. In nearly sixteen months of its launch, the scheme has certified over 13 lakh candidates under its two different programs - Short Term Trainings and Special Projects. The scheme’s other component - Recognition of Prior Learning is a certification program that gives due importance to learning as an outcome rather than learning as process.
The Short-Term Training (STT) program of PMKVY (2016-20), imparted through NSDC’s approved training centres, is aimed at benefitting youth who are either school/college dropouts or unemployed. Apart from skills training, the program comprises orientation in soft skills, entrepreneurship, financial and digital literacy. The program encompassing 200 – 1,000 hours of skill training, is designed according to varied job roles.
The other component of PMKVY (2016-20), is Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) comprising 12 – 80 hours of training. It provides recognition to the informal learning or learning through work to get equal acceptance as the formal levels of education. Focusing on workforce in the unorganised sectors, RPL is designed for those who already have a job or are self- employed and require up-skilling and certification for better prospects. Till date, more than 4.5 lakh candidates have been certified under this component of PMKVY (2016-20).