Empowering Youth Through Skill Development: The Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana
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PMKVY has been one of the major initiatives by MSDE since 2015 in terms of its aim to equip the Indian youth with industry-relevant skills. This is one of the prime schemes aimed at enhancing employability and fostering economic independence of the youth by providing them with the requisite training, making them capable of meeting the employment demands.
Components of Training under PMKVY
PMKVY has two major components: STT and RPL:
Short Term Training: The objective of this is to impart training for skills in various sectors through a network of empanelled training centres across the country. The said institutions offer short duration courses according to the needs of the industries concerned with the skills, so that the candidate gets a job in the same after completion of the course.
RPL caters to those who have skills or work experience but do not have formal certification. The competency pool is assessed and certified through orientation or bridge courses, which can finally establish their skills in the job market.
As of June 30, 2024, PMKVY has trained 1.48 crore candidates. Indeed, this huge reach and impact portray their skill development for the youth of India.
Establishment of Quality Training Infrastructure
PMKVY has also initiated the setting up of model skill training centers called Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Kendras (PMKK) that are fully functional across the country. Courses driven by industry needs are delivered through these centres not only for enhancing employability but also to create aspirational value for skill development. As of date, 508 PMKKs are functioning and providing a robust platform for skill training.
Moreover, the scheme makes use of existing infrastructure in most government and private schools, colleges, and universities to optimize resource usage. In this way, this collaborative effort enables diffusion of skill training on a much wider scale, reaching diverse demographics.
Monitoring and Integration through Skill India Digital Hub
The MSDE has brought out the Skill India Digital Hub for monitoring and tracking of training effectiveness. This is a unified platform for integrating different ecosystems of Skilling, Education, Employment, and Entrepreneurship, which can provide all end-to-end services to stakeholder(s) involved. The SIDH shall capture the entire training life cycle from candidate registration to post certification follow up thereby ensuring transparency and accountability of the training process.
The platform also facilitates Aadhaar authentication, apart from integration with the PFMS for efficient financial transactions, thereby allowing DBT to eligible candidates. Beyond this, the portal links trained candidates with probable employers, thus improving their prospect of getting a job.
Placement Tracking and Future Directions
Placements have been tracked since the earlier versions of PMKVY 1.0, 2.0, and 3.0 as a key performance indicator. Of the 56.88 lakh certified candidates under the STT component, 24.3 lakh have got placed post-program, of which 2.94 lakh are stated to be self-employed. Under PMKVY 4.0, nevertheless, that has been launched in FY 2022-23, it has been decided to delink tracking of placements from the stated objectives of the scheme and focus on qualitative training and skill development.
Conclusion
The Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana has become exemplary of India’s commitment to empower its youth through skill development. PMKVY is contributing to an increase in employability and the overall economic growth of the country through structured training and harnessing the power of modern technology in monitoring and support. While the scheme is always learning, it remains focused on meeting dynamic industry needs and aspirational requirements of youth.