Lok Sabha Question No. 123 (STARRED), answered on 2026-02-09
Subject: Ineligible Candidates Enrolled under PMKVY
Ministry: SKILL DEVELOPMENT AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP
Asked by: Smt. Rachna Banerjee

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF SKILL DEVELOPMENT AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP

## LOK SABHA

## STARRED QUESTION NO. *123

ANSWERED ON -09.02.2026

## INELIGIBLE CANDIDATES ENROLLED UNDER PMKVY

*123.  SMT. RACHNA BANERJEE:

Will the Minister of SKILL DEVELOPMENT AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP be pleased to state:

- (a)       whether it is a fact that the candidates were enrolled under Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY) in violation of the age, education and work experience qualifications prescribed in the guidelines, if so, the details thereof;

(b) the  number  and  details  of  such  ineligible  enrolments  identified  since  inception  of  the scheme, year-wise;

(c) whether any penalties have been imposed by the Government on training partners/agencies for such enrolments, year-wise; and

(d)       whether the Government had conducted any internal audits of the scheme before CAG inspection, if so, the details of such audits, year-wise?

## ANSWER

THE  MINISTER  OF  STATE  (INDEPENDENT  CHARGE)  IN  THE  MINISTRY  OF  SKILL DEVELOPMENT AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP

(SHRI JAYANT CHAUDHARY)

(a) to (d)         A Statement is laid on the Table of the House.

## STATEMENT REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PARTS (A) TO (D) OF LOK SABHA STARRED QUESTION NO. *123 ANSWERED ON 09.02.2026 ASKED BY SMT. RACHNA BANERJEE REGARDING INELIGIBLE CANDIDATES ENROLLED UNDER PMKVY

(a) to (d) The Government consistently undertakes audits and evaluations of its schemes and programmes to strengthen implementation, improve outcomes, and ensure accountability. In this context, the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) recently published a Performance Audit  Report on  the  Pradhan  Mantri  Kaushal  Vikas  Yojana  (PMKVY),  covering the  first  three phases of the scheme up to 2022. The report which is available at https://cag.gov.in/webroot/uploads/download\_audit\_report/2025/Report-No.-20-of-2025\_PA-PMKVY\_English-PDF-A-06943abec463479.68516873.pdf, identified certain instances of deviations  relating  to  age,  educational,  and  work-experience  eligibility  parameters  prescribed under PMKVY guidelines, thereby providing valuable inputs for further strengthening programme delivery.

Building on its ongoing efforts to enhance training quality and transparency, the Ministry of Skill Development  and  Entrepreneurship  (MSDE)  has  introduced  several  system-level  safeguards under  PMKVY.  These  include  Aadhaar-based  e-KYC,  face-authentication-enabled  AEBAS attendance for candidates and trainers, strengthened system validations, unique beneficiary IDs, and integration with the Public Financial Management System (PFMS) for improved monitoring of  fund  utilisation.  In  addition,  the  Skill  India  Digital  Hub  (SIDH)  has  been  integrated with  the Academic Bank of Credits (ABC), enabling generation of candidates' APAAR IDs, which support reliable validation of educational qualifications under PMKVY 4.0.

Further, the Government has undertaken comprehensive measures to reinforce accountability and compliance across the ecosystem. These measures include disciplinary proceedings where warranted,  suspension  or  blacklisting  of  non-compliant  entities,  recovery  of  funds  wherever applicable, and strengthening of monitoring mechanisms to prevent recurrence of such issues. Show Cause Notices have been issued to the concerned agencies seeking their responses to the observations made in the CAG Report.

At the same time, periodic independent evaluations continue to reflect the positive impact of the PMKVY programme. An evaluation by NITI Aayog (October 2020) indicated that approximately 94 percent of surveyed employers expressed willingness to hire more candidates trained under PMKVY. The study also noted that 52 percent of candidates placed in employment or oriented under the Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) component reported receiving higher salaries or expecting  improved  earnings  compared  to  uncertified  peers.  An  independent  evaluation  of PMKVY 2.0 conducted by the Indian Institute of Public Administration (IIPA) found that about 70.5 percent of surveyed candidates were placed in their desired skill sector. More recently, a thirdparty  evaluation  of  PMKVY  4.0  conducted  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 surveyed RPL candidates reported being satisfied or very satisfied with the training content, reflecting strong acceptance of the curriculum and its delivery across the country.

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