Training partners have been playing a crucial role in enabling and mobilizing large number of youth to become employable through PMKVY scheme. RPL under PMKVY has certified the skills and knowledge of existing workforce, increased their productivity and shown them different paths to further learning and better job roles. The setting up of PMKK centers is in line with building a narrative around the aspirational value of skills for enabling livelihoods. As on 12th April 2018, total number of students employed under PMKVY is 4,66,529. To bring more success to the scheme, new training partners can learn from the experience and advice from those who have been in the industry for long.
Empower Pragati expands the outreach and empowers youth through PMKK centers offering PMKVY courses
Empower Pragati offers PMKVY courses through PMKK centers in various districts. For PMKK centers the requirements for infrastructure, branding and logistics are more stringent than general PMKVY centers. They have 12 centers in western Uttar Pradesh and 14 more are coming up; by the end of the year it may add up to 40 centers.
The PMKK centers are a significant step in ensuring implementation of skills training through speed, scale and sustainability. It makes quality and consistency an integral part of the training while maintaining high standards of training facilitation through state-of-the-art training centers. The stringent rules and regulations are intended to work in favour training partners unlike the earlier instances when funds were misused by some training partners.
PMKK centers have created a positive buzz of being iconic multi-skill centers for a district, which train candidates in services and manufacturing skills. Facilities like smart classrooms, etc. changes the entire atmosphere for students and trainers. This is a great way to create a way to create an avenue for skill development involves participation from the local administration, political establishment, bureaucracy.
The emphasis on branding and media coverage is also helping Empower Pragati in getting visibility and mobilizing people. Local media in Muzaffarnagar, Bijnor, Bulandshahr and Ghaziabad cover the progress of these skilling programs regularly. For example, when news about exams for courier delivery gets reported, it’s a great way to create awareness and building aspirational value for such jobs. Any localized set up is far more effective than national advertisements. Empower Pragati also has satellite centers linked to the main PMKK center for better outreach. This not only helps students living far off but also becomes a venue for extension classes and other forms of remedial help to ensure students are not deprived of any opportunity. For mobilization and enrolment, they have Kiran and Badlaav programs that are aimed at helping marginalized women, and enable livelihoods through financial and digital literacy through altruistic ways of deeper community engagement.
“The launch of PMKVY 2 has brought in an entirely different flavor to skill development programs since the focus is more on the centers that are offering the programs, their infrastructure, quality and sustainability. When PMKK centers are allocated to training partner applicants after due diligence, they would incur an initial investment of Rs 60 – 80 lakhs on setting up the center as per specifications. With 75% of the debt investment from NSDC and 25% from the training partners, when PMKVY is implemented through PMKK, there is assurance of training targets and sustainable revenue, provided the terms and conditions are met.
Going forward, PMKVY and PMKK should be merged in the future and only thing proper training would happen.”Rajiv Sharma, Managing Director and Founder, Empower Pragati
Rajiv Sharma, Managing Director and Founder, Empower Pragati Making training demand driven and not target-based and flexibility for informal sector placement
Ideally, demand-driven training is the best way to make sure that trainees get jobs. But this can happen sporadically and not on a large scale. This is because of the disconnect wherein only 1/10th of the trainees can be absorbed or placed in jobs. Whereas government’s vision for skilling India is very larger and there aren’t so many jobs. A whole lot of informal sector jobs that are important and can be counted as employment – self employment leads to economically empowered. Openness to various other flexible, modes of employment will help.
PMKVY is the best scheme the ministry has designed and conceptualized for inclusion and empowerment. It takes all the good elements from previous skill development schemes and has made a course correction in PMKVY 2. In placements too it has provision for both wage employment and self-employment. State-of-the-art PMKKs are meant to be set up in every district of the country. With regards to this, it is essential to get a sense of the job requirements in the said district. For instance, in most places we build relationship with district level industry associations, area-wise and state-wise groups, etc. This helps in proactively mapping youth aspirations with the skill requirements in the district.
Employers need to be made aware of the apprenticeship scheme. Training partners can educate them and involve the industry members to give guest lectures and seek other ways of positive involvement. If you are looking at long-term skilling, PMKK is the place to be. After the first year, you are also free to do paid training, CSR programs or a combination of both, without violating the objectives of the PMKK and without compromising on the targets allocated to PMKVY.
Pritha Dutt, Director, Empower Pragati
Orion Edutech emphasizes on holistic skill development through the PMKVY courses offered at PMKK centers
Orion Edutech implements PMKVY only through PMKKs, except at 2 or 3 non-PMKK centers. They been allocated more than 100000 candidates and 75000 candidates have been provided training. With an allocation of 50 PMKKs and a commitment for 3 years for PMKVY targets, Orion Edutech has developed All PMKKs as multi-skill centers, offering training in multiple job roles, with a minimum of 5 job roles. Currently 45 centers are operational in Assam, Tripura, Nagaland. WB, Bihar, Haryana, UP, Delhi, Jammu and Kashmir and Maharashtra.
Job roles are selected from those specified by Sector Skill Councils with NSQF compliant curriculum. Training includes domain training, soft skill, financial and digital literacy, etc. Since PMKVY is a placement linked training program, they need to place 75% of the students. The classrooms are state-of-art with latest technology, CC TVs, Aadhaar-linked biometric attendance, digital content and all that goes into creating an aspirational feel for skilling.
When it comes to retention of candidates placed in jobs, Orion Edutech finds high retention in Retail, Hospitality, Customer Care. This is also because of the training methodology that puts them in actual work environment and sets right expectations about the job roles. For instance, they understand beforehand that Restaurant and F&B jobs have long work hours but there could be good earnings through tips for the services and opportunities to move up the career ladder. The candidates are also prepared through industry visits, guest lectures, access to digital learning depending on the job roles and dynamic needs of the industry.
“We go an extra mile. We give lot of importance to Soft Skills training and as against the mandated 40 hours, we train our students for 80 hours. This is because most entry-level jobs demand right attitude, discipline, interpersonal skills and digital skills rather than high level of domain training. And, for overall well being of the students, we conduct Yoga and Meditation. This helps them in learning to remain focused, positive and motivated.”
PMKVY has definitely undergone major changes; it is an ideal scheme with right expectations and it been delivering good results. However, in terms of documentation for placement of candidates, there needs to be some flexibility. When placed in the informal sector, it becomes difficult to track the candidates for 3 months since they change their mobile phone numbers and there could be other operational issues.
Starting a PMKK center requires an investment of Rs 75 – 80 lakhs and it requires tremendous dedication and passion to drive it. There are no shortcuts to skilling and your enterprise will not deliver results instantly nor any monetary gains. When taken in the right spirit, transforming the lives of youth, who are dropouts or underprivileged is a journey with several opportunities disguised as challenges.
Manish Agarwal, Co-Founder – Director, Orion Edutech
Manish Agarwal, Co-Founder – Director, Orion EdutechLabourNet effectively uses RPL under PMKVY for certifying informally acquired skills and create paths for career growth
LabourNet has utilised PMKVY to reach rural and urban youth with skill-based training in many industry sectors that are predominantly in the informal sector. Currently, LabourNet focuses on Agriculture, Automotive, Apparel, leather, Rubber and Logistics through short-term training and Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) for livelihood enablement and productivity enhancement. Prior to the RPL and RPL with Bridge interventions, the workers did not have any formal proof of their knowledge and skills and they depended on their colleagues and supervisors to recommend them. Post certification, LabourNet has observed new enthusiasm and engagement of the workforce since they are empowered with latest technical knowhow and updates from the industry. Also, they are able to reduce dependency on middlemen and find better jobs that gets them better income.“Through RPL and re-skilling we have impacted a number of sectors such as Leather, Rubber, Automotive, Agriculture, Apparel, Logistics, Rubber, Paint and Construction touching more than 45000 lives. LabourNet has a proficient team that motivates the labourers and their supervisors to get them enrolled for RPL and complete the whole program. Labourers are counselled on numerous benefits of RPL and it has encouraged them to enrol. Our management, too, has built a good rapport with the HR managers which has helped in successful implementation of the program.”Biju Kumar, Senior General Manager, LabourNet
Biju Kumar, Senior General Manager, LabourNet 
