Rural skilling scheme falls short: Parliament panel flags job placement gaps

The Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Grameen Kaushalya Yojana (DDU-GKY), a flagship rural skilling programme of the Government of India, aims to enhance the employability of rural youth. However, a parliamentary committee has now raised serious concerns about the scheme's effectiveness, pointing out that many trained candidates are not getting jobs and those who do often receive low wages.

In its report tabled in Parliament on Tuesday, the Standing Committee on Rural Development, headed by Congress Lok Sabha MP Saptagiri Ulaka, noted that as of March 2026, 18.38 lakh rural youth had been trained under DDU-GKY. Of these, 11.94 lakh were placed in jobs, including 576 foreign placements. The scheme covers 37 sectors and 816 trades. Women account for 9.65 lakh of those trained and 6.03 lakh of those placed, which is nearly 50% of total placements.

The committee observed that a significant number of candidates trained under the scheme were not securing employment, while those who found jobs often received inadequate salaries. It said that low wages and insufficient support mechanisms were contributing to high dropout rates and distress migration among rural workers.

The scheme had an approved budget of ₹10,114.53 crore for the period 2021-26. However, the revised estimate for this period stood at ₹1,161.99 crore, against which actual expenditure was ₹977.74 crore, leaving ₹184.25 crore unspent. Ministry officials told the committee that the gap stemmed from COVID-19 disruptions during 2020-21 and 2022-23, which delayed project approvals. They said most projects were approved only in 2023-24, so expenditure is expected to be reflected in the coming years.

To address these challenges, the committee has directed the government to ensure near 100% placement tracking as far as possible, with mandatory industry linkages, localised placement drives, regular post-training follow-ups, mentorship and credit facilitation. It called for institutionalising enhanced post-placement support, including extended migration assistance, retention monitoring, skill upgradation and raising minimum wage employment targets.

The panel also said that the performance of Project Implementing Agencies (PIAs) should not be judged solely on the basis of initial placements. Instead, agencies should be assessed on sustained employment and retention of beneficiaries to ensure durable livelihood outcomes.

Beyond DDU-GKY, the committee expressed concern over the under-utilisation of funds in other rural livelihood and skilling schemes during 2021-26. Under the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-National Rural Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NRLM), ₹119.06 crore was unspent, while Rural Self Employment Training Institutes (RSETIs) left ₹28.21 crore unutilised. The report noted that delays in fund release and other implementation bottlenecks had adversely affected programme performance.

Under the RSETI scheme, which supports self-employment, 61.45 lakh people have been trained and 44.9 lakh settled in enterprises since 2009. Credit linkage has reached over 23.5 lakh beneficiaries, with women making up about 71% of those trained.

The committee's recommendations aim to bridge the gap between training and employment, ensuring that rural youth benefit from sustainable livelihood opportunities. The findings highlight the need for more robust monitoring and support systems to translate skilling into stable, well-paying jobs.