What is the PM Internship Scheme?
- A national-scale internship programme announced in Union Budget 2024.
- Objective: Provide 1 crore internships in five years in top Indian companies.
- Designed to bridge: industry–academia gap, employability skills, and early career exposure for youth.
- Implemented via Ministry of Corporate Affairs; companies post internships on a central portal.
Relevance
GS-II: Governance
- Scheme design flaws; weak policy feedback loops; centre–industry coordination gaps.
- Budget utilisation issues; outcome vs output mismatch.
GS-III: Economy
- Labour market dynamics; employability and skilling ecosystem.
- Youth job-preparedness and industry-academia mismatch.
GS-II: Social Sector Development
- Youth aspirations; access barriers; regional disparities.
- Internship quality norms; role clarity; stipend adequacy.
Why is it in News?
- Data presented in Parliament shows low acceptance and high dropout rates.
- Despite exceeding target of 1.25 lakh internship offers for the pilot, only 20% of candidates accepted across two rounds.
- Nearly 20% of those who accepted quit mid-way, raising concerns about scheme design, workplace quality, and alignment with youth expectations.
Pilot Scale & Targets
- Pilot launched in October 2024, target: 1.25 lakh internships in one year.
- Total internships posted (Round 1 + Round 2): 2.45 lakh+ opportunities.
Key Numbers (Two Rounds Combined)
- 1.65 lakh offers made by companies.
- 33,300 offers accepted → Acceptance rate: 20.2%.
- 6,618 candidates left prematurely → Dropout rate: 19.9% among accepted candidates.
Round-wise Performance
Round 1
- Opportunities posted: 1.27 lakh.
- Applications: 6.21 lakh.
- Offers made: 82,000.
- Accepted: 8,700 (10.6% acceptance).
- Dropouts: 4,565 → More than 50% of interns quit mid-way.
Round 2 (January onwards)
- Opportunities posted: 1.18 lakh.
- Applications: 4.55 lakh.
- Offers made: 83,000+.
- Accepted: 24,600 (30% acceptance).
- Dropouts: 2,053 → 8.3% quit rate.
Youth Response: Why Only 20% Acceptance?
- Data indicates candidates declined offers due to:
- Location mismatch (internships far from home; low stipends insufficient to support relocation).
- Unsuitable roles (low-skilled tasks, perceived lack of value).
- Long durations incompatible with academic calendars/exams.
- Many internships may not align with career aspirations or sector preferences.
High Dropout Rates: Key Reasons
- Poor role clarity and limited learning outcomes.
- Inadequate mentorship, long work hours, or project irrelevance.
- Stipend-quality mismatch: opportunity cost remains high for many students.
- Mismatch between expectations (skill-building) and reality (routine administrative tasks).
- Better opportunities elsewhere (private platforms/placements).
Utilisation of Funds
- Original pilot budget: ₹840 crore.
- Revised allocation (FY 2024–25): ₹380 crore.
- Actual utilisation so far: ₹73.72 crore.
- Low utilisation reflects low participation and operational delays.
Structural Challenges in PMIS
- Geographical concentration of opportunities in large metros; rural/remote candidates unable to relocate.
- Sector skew: many roles posted in sales, operations, basic admin; fewer in high-skill domains.
- Insufficient company participation from top-tier firms.
- Lack of flexibility in internship timings and duration.
- Portal-based recruitment lacks personalised matching, career guidance, or screening support.
Implications
- Indicates a misalignment between scheme design and youth aspirations.
- Calls into question feasibility of reaching the target of 1 crore internships.
- Poor internship experience could undermine employability goals.
- High dropout → signals issues in internship quality, company readiness, or monitoring.
- Low acceptance → reflects need for stronger incentives for both companies and interns.
Required Reforms
- Stipend rationalisation based on city tiers and living cost.
- Remote/hybrid internship options to expand reach.
- Sector diversification: tech, digital, green economy, EV, logistics, AI, MSMEs.
- Academic integration: credit-linked internships through universities.
- Quality assurance framework: standardised projects, mentorship norms, feedback loop.
- Improved matching algorithm on the portal to align skills–roles–location.
- Performance-based incentives for companies ensuring high-quality mentorship.
Conclusion
- The pilot achieved numbers in terms of offers, not uptake.
- The bottleneck is not supply but acceptance and retention.
- For the scheme to succeed at national scale:
- Roles must be meaningful.
- Stipends must be realistic.
- Duration must be flexible.
- Companies must be accountable.
- Without addressing these structural issues, scaling to 1 crore internships in 5 years is unlikely.
