The government is considering key changes to the PM Internship Scheme (PMIS) to make it more workable, and ensure that a lager pool of job seekers benefit from it.
According to official sources, it may, to the extent possible, select and recommend candidates to each participating unit from the same state it is located. The proposed state-specific selection is expected to address the issue of a lack of enthusiasm among a section of potential beneficiaries to the scheme.
Currently, in a vast number of cases, shortlisted individuals are unwilling to travel to a different state for availing 12-month internship, especially given the “low stipend.” Hence, the government–which shortlists candidates for the internship positions in participating companies–may start selecting candidates based on the locality factor, the sources added.
While there is also a demand from large firms implementing the scheme for the right to select the candidates, a final call on this is yet to be taken.
Under the current norm, individuals who wish to avail internship opportunities are required to register themselves at an online portal, where their profiles are scanned for suitable allotment. The companies have no role in shortlisting candidates.
Experts said that more changes are needed in the second round of the scheme which is currently under way. “The problem is that the shortlisting is being done by the ministry, and the candidates which are referred to the companies often don’t fit the bill. The government should also transfer the shortlisting job to the companies,” said spokesperson of a large employer on condition of anonymity.
Sources said that many companies are struggling to benefit from the scheme because of “a lack of ownership” at the company level and poor assessment of the workforce gap. Participating companies are facing problems with training of the candidates due to the geographic constraints, as the stipend amounts appear insufficient to motivate interstate relocation, creating a mismatch between available opportunities and candidate mobility, they said.
FE reported on Monday that the government has urged companies to create in-house PMIS cells in order to streamline the scheme implementation and boost intake of the interns.
In the first round, only 28,141 candidates accepted internship offers even though companies had offered 82,077 internships. More than 43% of these opportunities were offered in five states — Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar and Haryana.
The candidates from other parts of the country were not willing to locate to these states as the stipend was low — Rs 5,000 per month in addition to a one-time allowance of Rs 6,000, explained the sources. An official said that of the 28,141 interns, who accepted the offer, less than 20,000 are interning on the ground.
Pallavi Jha, CMD, Dale Carnegie India said that localizing the internship program could improve efficiency by addressing barriers, potentially increasing participation rates and reducing drop-out percentages. “A regionally-focused approach might better align opportunities with local industry needs while reducing financial burdens on participants,” she added.
Jaideep Kewalramani, chief operating officer, TeamLease Edtech, said that talent mobility is a factor that organisations have to deal with, and the same is true with interns as well. “The adoption of the PMIS has to be delinked from this factor to some extent as the idea of an internship is to offer exposure and hands-on experience to students who are in the vicinity of the industry,” he said.
In the current financial year, the ministry of corporate affairs (MCA) has targeted to provide 125,000 internship opportunities to candidates in 500 partner companies. The partner companies have been selected on the basis of average Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) expenditure in the last three years, and covers a large number of diverse sectors including aviation and defence, automotive, banking and financial services, chemical industry, oil, gas and energy etc.
In February, the MCA conducted a PMIS event in Kolkata. The plan is to hold 70 events across districts with the highest number of internship opportunities.