National skill development programme placements 'abysmally low'

New Delhi (IANS) The government's ambitious scheme, Prime Minister Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY), aiming to skill the youth of the country has performed poorly so far as placement of the trained or certified people under the scheme is concerned.

As per government data, under PMKVY 3.0, out of 3,99,860 certified candidates only 30,599 were reportedly placed. Similarly, under PMKVY 2.0, out of the 91,38,665 certified candidates only 21,32,715 candidates were reportedly placed.

Taking note of the poor placement records under the scheme, a parliamentary standing committee observed that despite the revamping of the scheme in its 3.0 version, some of the core issues such as poor placement figures and under utilisation of allocated funds, that plagued PMKVY 2.0, continue to persist in PMKVY 3.0.

"The committee notes that under PMKVY 3.0, out of 3,99,860 certified candidates only 30,599 were reportedly placed. Similarly, in terms of the financial performance, against the total amount of Rs 686.02 crore released, the actual utilisation of funds has been Rs 294.98 crore only as on 30th June, 2022," it said.

Commenting strongly, the committee said that the very purpose of imparting training and certifying the candidates was defeated when placement statistics are abysmally low.

"The committee are of the considered opinion that the very purpose of imparting training and certifying the candidates is defeated when placement statistics is abysmally low. Similarly, gross under utilisation of funds undermines the intent of such an important scheme," the report said.

It added: "Needless to say, the Ministry ought to pay serious attention towards addressing the impediments so as to leverage the placement/self-employment of the trained/certified candidates to a sizeable extent as well as to maximise utilisation of the earmarked funds."

As per the report, on the issue of low placements under PMKVY 3.0, the Ministry has clarified that the last date of enrolment under PMKVY 3.0 was 31st March 2022 and the implementation of the training is still underway.

The Ministry has further submitted that some assessments and certifications of the trained candidates are about to be completed and once the same is completed, placements are expected to increase under PMKVY 3.0.

Recommending to ensure placement under the scheme the report said, "The Committee are of the firm opinion that the placement statistics is the real barometer for measuring the success of the Scheme and needless to mention the Ministry should make more concerted efforts in unison with all the stakeholders to ensure that the placement of the certified candidates is enhanced to an appreciable extent."

The Committee also impressed upon the Ministry to endeavour to make the certification process more transparent and effective so that it facilitates more self employment besides ensuring fair wages to the skilled candidates.

"It is equally imperative to encourage and nurture skill training and certification programmes for the youth in the acclaimed local produces in different parts of the Country so as to enable them to become self-sufficient," said the report.

The Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY) was launched as a pilot scheme in 2015 to encourage and promote skill development in the country by providing free short-duration skill training programmes and incentivising it by providing monetary rewards to youths for obtaining skill certification.

The third phase of PMKVY 3.0 was launched in January 2021. Incorporating the learnings from PMKVY 1.0 and PMKVY 2.0, it was launched with a set of guidelines witnessing the increased role of the District Skill Committees (DSCs) for addressing the skill gap and assessing demand at the district level.