The government has announced the PM-SETU scheme, which plans to spend ₹6,000 crore to improve Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) and increase job skills among youth. The aim is to make ITI students more employable and help industries find skilled workers.
However, experts are questioning whether the scheme will actually lead to jobs. A 2023 NITI Aayog report shows that the government already spends about ₹10,000 crore every year on running around 3,500 government ITIs. In addition, ₹2,200 crore was spent under the STRIVE scheme, which ended in 2024.
Despite this large spending, job results have been very poor. Out of more than 4.14 lakh students trained, only 405 got jobs. This means the placement rate was just 0.09%.
The report suggests that simply spending more money is not enough. Better training quality, stronger links with industry, and real job opportunities are needed for success.
