Editorial: Widening skill gap

The PM’s Internship Scheme, the government’s long-promised assault on unemployment and unemployability, has opened to an enthusiastic response from the nation’s youth. Since its portal opened for registration on October 12, over 1.55 lakh applicants had signed up at last count. A total of 91,000 internship positions have been posted by 193 companies, including major players like Maruti Suzuki and Reliance Industries.

The scheme has an ambitious target of enlisting India’s top 500 companies to provide internships to one crore young men and women over the next five years. The internships are to last for 12 months, providing substantial industry exposure in sectors like automotive, energy, and hospitality. What makes the programme appealing to the youth is the one-time payment of Rs 6,000 upon joining and a monthly stipend of Rs 5,000 (Rs 4,500 from the government and Rs 500 from the recruiting company).

Well begun may be half done, but it’s good to remember that the BJP government has a record of serving us hasty pudding. Its best-laid plans have tended to produce a number gush initially before fading away. Its track record of 10 years is littered with the wreckage of several schemes with smart logos like Smart Cities, Make in India and Skill India.

The last named in fact was a forerunner of the present initiative. It was launched with fanfare by the PM in 2015 with the same aim of bridging the skills gap in sectors like IT, hospitality, construction, healthcare and entrepreneurship. The target was to train over 40 crore youngsters by 2022 but managed only 1.42 crore in seven years. The fact that ten years on we are back at the starting line, launching another programme with similar goals, must make us wonder whether we design our plans well enough or lack the vigour to implement them effectively.

The case for skilling up our youth is well-known. About 49 percent of graduates in India are considered unemployable, well short of the technical skills the industry needs, and far short of the soft skills necessary for progress in employment. But are final-year internships or skill interventions the correct way to bridge the gap? Reports suggest that only 15% of the individuals trained under the Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana secured jobs. What does that portend for the current internship initiative?

The skill deficit we see in our graduates is a product of the entire educational system, not just the terminal part of it. It cannot be corrected with short-term fixes like internship programmes. Seventeen years of a curriculum based on outdated texts and outmoded teaching methods that crush curiosity and independent thinking cannot be undone with cosmetic measures.

We need to correct flaws in the design of the internship programme. Participating companies are expected to contribute only 10% of the cost with funds sourced from their CSR budgets. This raises concerns that it might lead to superficial engagement rather than any meaningful investment.

The eligibility criteria for internship applicants too need reconsideration. Curiously, the scheme excludes graduates older than 24 and those from families earning more than Rs 8 lakh per annum while making no provision for reservations. But most glaringly, there is no sign of any monitoring mechanism. For a scheme that requires efficient coordination between multiple government bodies and private companies that’s a huge lacuna and a sure portent of failure.