PM Internship Scheme a ‘national cause’, more companies need to chip in: Sitharaman

Union Finance and Corporate Affairs Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has called on more companies to participate in the PM Internship Scheme (PMIS), citing larger national interest. Now, in its second round – still at the pilot stage – the scheme has drawn internship postings from 327 companies, up from around 280 in the first round.

Announced in the Union Budget for 2024-25 last July, the scheme aims to provide internships to one crore youth in top 500 companies over five years.

“In this second phase, more industries have come forward. I appreciate the industry’s readiness to come forward and offer positions, but for a country of our size and with the objective that the top 500 companies participate, we still have some way to go,” Sitharaman said at the launch of the PMIS mobile app on Monday.

“I would appeal to the industry to make sure that the rest of them, beyond those who have come forward, should also participate. This is a national cause. Nobody is expecting you to cut your profits. Nobody is expecting the industry to face loss. The government is chipping in money,” she added.

Under the scheme, an amount of Rs 4,500 will be provided per month by the Government of India to selected candidates through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT), with an additional Rs 500 offset to be provided by the company’s CSR (corporate social responsibility) funds.

In the first round of the pilot, which was conducted between October and December last year, over 1.27 lakh opportunities were posted and over 82,000 offers were made to successful candidates. The number of candidates who accepted internship offers was lower than expected in the first round, with just around 8,000 taking up offers till February 6, The Indian Express had earlier reported.

In the second round, which began in January, around 1.18 lakh internship opportunities are up for grabs, spread across 735 districts. The application window for the second round will close on March 31.

“We need to give confidence to our youth… I would think Indian industry should participate in the larger interest of this country, use that demographic dividend which exists, so that their productivity and future can be better endured with our youngsters going there,” Sitharaman said.

Now, with the launch of the PMIS mobile app, users can also take advantage of the referral program recently announced by the Ministry of Corporate Affairs. “The referral program would enable the registered youth to refer other eligible candidates for the scheme and win rewards. The registered youth on the PM Internship portal (web browser) can also participate in this referral program,” a note by the ministry said.

The ministry has also taken steps to enhance access to the scheme in the second round. “The dashboard of the PMIS Portal has been simplified, made more user-friendly, and greater details of the opportunities and roles offered have been provided. Officials from the MCA, state governments, and industry partners interacted with the youth at more than 80 outreach events held at various educational institutes, such as colleges and Rozgar Melas,” the note added.

In the first round, Sitharaman said the process was automated, transparent, and designed to be inclusive. “The system was very clearly supportive of all the proactive provisions in the Constitution, so that nobody is missed out. People who needed that additional support were given. The reservation policy was also introduced into it. But the companies were given a shortlist, through which they could choose who they wanted to. There was no compulsion on the industry, no interference in their management process,” she said.

“As much as possible, through the system itself, every intern applicant was tried to be placed in the area from which he came. Literally within the district, if not, the neighbouring district. No one was expected to get out too far, unless they chose to go far,” she added.

Under the scheme, the government also provides a one-time grant of Rs 6,000 per annum for incidentals to cover miscellaneous expenses incurred by selected candidates during their internship.

The internship scheme was a part of the Prime Minister’s Package for Employment and Skilling announced in the 2024-25 Budget with an overall outlay of Rs 2 lakh crore. Initially, Rs 2,000 crore was provided to the corporate affairs ministry for the ongoing financial year.

In the revised estimates for 2024-25, the amount allocated for the scheme was scaled down to Rs 380 crore. For 2025-26, an amount of Rs 10,831 crore has been provided in the Budget, including Rs 59.77 crore of capital outlay.