Cabinet improve fresh changes in Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY)

•  The Union Cabinet approved the Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY) with an outlay of Rs 12000 crore to impart skill training to one crore people over the next four years (2016-2020).
• PMKVY will impart fresh training to 60 lakh youths and certify skills of 40 lakh persons acquired non-formally under the Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL). The target allocation between fresh trainings and RPL will be flexible and interchangeable depending on functional and operational requirements
• This scheme would move to a grant based model where the training and assessment cost would be directly reimbursed to training providers and assessment bodies in accordance with the Common Norms.
• State governments would be involved through a project based approach under the PMKVY 2016-20 with 25% of the total training targets, both financial and physical, being allocated under this stream of the scheme. The financial amount/budget for achieving 25% of the total training targets of next phase of PMKVY would be directly allocated to the States
• As per the approved plan, training centres will be categorised on the basis of their infrastructure and past performance and third party agencies will be deployed to validate their training efforts and placement records.
• Members of Parliament will also be roped in to mobilise youth for training, monitor the scheme in their constituencies and post-training placement of trainees.
• For youths from the Kashmir Valley, the Leh region, the north-eastern States and Left-wing extremism-affected districts, residential programmes will be promoted.
• Training partners under the scheme will be required to ensure valid Aadhaar numbers of trainees at the time of enrolment and subsequently track attendance through students’ biometrics.
• It includes a mechanism to revive the traditional Guru-Shishya approach to train youth with the help of local craftsmen and trade practitioners.
• This new version of the PMKVY would strengthen the system and make trainings more effective with robust monitoring of outcomes.

Other features of PMKVY are:

• Standards- Training will be done against standards (National Occupational Standards - NOS and Qualification Packs - QPs for specific job roles) formulated by industry-driven bodies, namely the Sector Skills Councils (SSCs). Third party assessments for skill training will be done based on national (and often) global standards.
• Demand-driven targets: Based on assessment of skill demand and the Skill Gap Studies, target for skill training would be allocated to training providers by job-role and by district/city to the extent possible, by NSDC in consultation with the SSCs, States/UTs and the Central Ministries/Departments under the oversight of the Steering Committee of PMKVY.
• Target aligned to national flagship programmes and regions: Target for skill training would be aligned to the demand from the Central Governments flagship programmes, such as - Swachh Bharat, Make in India, Digital India, National Solar Mission and so on.
• Supply side perspective in target fixation: Skill training under PMKVY would essentially target drop out students after class 10 and class 12 and hence these numbers will be taken into consideration while deciding state / district wise targets. There will be special focus on youth in regions affected by left-wing extremists and from North Eastern States and J&K.
• Recognition of prior learning (RPL): Under PMKVY, trainees with prior experience or skills and competencies will be assessed and they will also be given monetary rewards for undergoing assessments. This will be an important step towards recognising the skills possessed by workers working in the informal sector and their inclusion. This will also facilitate the process of skill upgradation and re-skilling of the existing workforce. The focus of RPL would be on those job-roles/sectors in which it is most desired and it will be accompanied with a strong advocacy campaign to promote a paradigm shift in the labour market to make skill training to standards aspirational.
• Variable amount of monetary reward: Monetary reward for various job roles within a sector would also vary. This amount would be arrived at after taking various factors like cost of training, willingness of trainees for pay and other relevant factors into consideration. Higher incentives will be given to training in manufacturing, construction and plumbing sectors.
• Robust regime for registration of training providers: NSDC training partners undergo due diligence before being registered with NSDC. Government affiliated training centres and other training partners will be approved by the SSCs on the basis of guidelines issued by NSDC. Under PMKVY, even the government affiliated training providers will undergo due diligence as per the process manual. Each training partner would be responsible for its entire franchisee network and the infrastructure of training centers. The same will be part of the monitoring process. Only first level of franchising would be allowed but the same should be declared in advance and validated on the basis of random sampling as per guidelines in the process manual.
• Focussed awareness building and mobilisation activities: Awareness building & mobilization activities would be carried out with the involvement of local State and district governments as well as involve Members of Parliament in the activities to ensure greater outreach and ownership.
• Enhanced monitoring: To monitor the training process, SSCs will be tasked with verifying and recording details of all training centres on the Skill Development Management System (SDMS), and ascertain quality of training locations and courses through certified assessors during the time of assessments. Possibility of putting in place a system of bio-metric attendance and sample video recording would be explored.
• Mentorship support: A mentorship programme will be created in order to support trainees who have successfully completed the training programme and are in the process of looking for employment opportunities. Training providers will be responsible for identifying mentors who will support and guide trainees in the post-training phase. These mentors will provide career guidance and counselling for trainees once they have completed training and will also help connect them to employment opportunities. This mentorship programme will also facilitate the tracking of trainees in the post training phase.
• Evaluation: Trainee feedback based on validated standard format obtained at the time of assessment will become the key element of the evaluation framework to assess the effectiveness and scale up of PMKVY in future.
• Grievance redressal: A proper grievance redressal mechanism would be put in place. Online Citizens Portal would be set up to disseminate information about PMKVY. This would also serve as a platform for redressal of grievances. The portal would also include a complete database of all available courses and training centres under PMKVY.

Analysis:

• Currently, only a very small proportion of India’s workforce has any formal skill training. There are several sectors of the country’s economy face shortage of skilled people and are mired with low productivity levels due to poor quality of workforce.
• At the same time, large sections of the country’s youth are looking for economic and livelihood opportunities. In this context, skill development has become a key priority area for the country. This is not only essential for economic development, but would help to fulfil youth aspirations for good quality, better paid jobs and self-employment opportunities. This would also enable the country to take advantage of its favourable demographic profile.
• With a large pool of skilled people, India has an opportunity to become a skill provider for the world, particularly the ageing developed world.
• Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY) scheme aims to enable and mobilize a large number of Indian youth to take up skill training and become employable and earn their livelihood. Under the scheme, monetary reward would be provided to trainees who are successfully trained, assessed and certified in skill courses run by affiliated training providers. This will boost the productivity of the country’s workforce by enabling them to acquire high quality skill training across a range of sectors.
• It will also bring about a paradigm shift from input-based to outcome-based skill training in the country. It also seeks to significantly scale up skill training activities in the country and enable skill training to happen at a fast pace without compromising quality.

By: Vishal