Corrective Steps Taken To Strengthen PMKVY After CAG Observations: Mos Skill Development

(MENAFN- KNN India) New Delhi, Feb 10 (KNN) Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship Jayant Chaudhary has informed the Lok Sabha that the government has undertaken corrective and systemic measures following certain observations made in the Performance Audit Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) on the Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY).

The Minister said the CAG report, which covered the first three phases of PMKVY up to 2022, flagged certain deviations relating to age, educational qualifications and work-experience eligibility parameters prescribed under scheme guidelines. He noted that the findings provide valuable inputs for strengthening programme implementation.

Enhanced System Safeguards Introduced

The Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) has introduced several safeguards to enhance transparency and training quality under PMKVY.

These include Aadhaar-based e-KYC, face-authentication-enabled Aadhaar Enabled Biometric Attendance System (AEBAS) for candidates and trainers, stronger system validations, unique beneficiary IDs, and integration with the Public Financial Management System (PFMS) to improve fund utilisation monitoring.

The Skill India Digital Hub (SIDH) has also been integrated with the Academic Bank of Credits (ABC), enabling the generation of APAAR IDs to facilitate validation of educational qualifications under PMKVY 4.0.

Disciplinary Action and Monitoring Measures

The Minister stated that the government has initiated disciplinary proceedings where necessary, including suspension or blacklisting of non-compliant entities and recovery of funds wherever applicable. Show Cause Notices have been issued to concerned agencies in response to the CAG observations.

He added that monitoring mechanisms have been strengthened to prevent recurrence of such issues.

Positive Impact Reflected in Independent Evaluations

Citing independent assessments, Chaudhary highlighted that periodic evaluations indicate strong outcomes under PMKVY.

A NITI Aayog evaluation (October 2020) found that about 94 percent of surveyed employers expressed willingness to hire PMKVY-trained candidates. The study also reported that 52 percent of candidates placed in employment or certified under Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) experienced higher salaries or expected improved earnings.

An evaluation of PMKVY 2.0 by the Indian Institute of Public Administration (IIPA) found that around 70.5 percent of candidates were placed in their desired skill sector.

More recently, a third-party evaluation of PMKVY 4.0 by the Arun Jaitley National Institute of Financial Management (AJNIFM) in 2025 observed that 77 percent of Short-Term Training (STT) candidates and 78 percent of RPL candidates reported satisfaction with training content and delivery.

The Minister reiterated that audits and evaluations remain integral to strengthening implementation, improving outcomes and ensuring accountability under government skilling initiatives.

(KNN Bureau)

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