Certificates alone don’t create livelihoods
A parliamentary panel has flagged a worrying gap in the DDU-GKY rural skilling scheme. Of 11.94 lakh trained, only 5.65 lakh got jobs. That’s less than 50%. And even among those placed, many face low wages and poor support.
DDU-GKY was meant to bridge the gap between training and employment for rural youth. The idea was sound: skill, place, and support. The reality is different—weak industry linkages, no post-placement tracking, and a focus on numbers over quality.
The panel wants mandatory industry links, localised wage-employment targets, and credit facilitation. It also calls for enhanced support — mentoring and monitoring for at least a year after placement.
This is not just about one scheme. India’s skilling ecosystem has a habit of producing certificates without careers. Training centres meet targets, but employers don’t get job-ready candidates. Meanwhile, rural youth migrate anyway, often to low-wage, insecure work.
Skilling must be tied to local economies. What jobs exist in that district? What MSMEs need workers? Without that mapping, we are training for a market that doesn’t exist.
Women account for 9.65 lakh of those trained. Their placement rate is even lower. For them, skilling must also mean safe workplaces, transport, and childcare.
Jobs won’t come from training alone. They will come when industry, government, and local institutions work together. Until then, DDU-GKY will remain a program of good intentions and missed outcomes.