The Aryavarth Express
Agency(New Delhi): Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge has leveled serious criticisms against the Union government’s flagship program, the Skill India Mission. In a recent statement, Kharge highlighted the program’s shortcomings, pointing out that despite its ambitious inception in 2015 to train 40 crore (400 million) people by 2022, only about 3.5% of this target was achieved as of December 2023.
Kharge further alleged that a significant number of those trained under the program, approximately 83%, remain unemployed, while 20% have dropped out. The Congress President also expressed concerns over a drastic 94% reduction in Skill Training Centers since the program’s inception, questioning the accessibility and effectiveness of the mission.
These criticisms were in stark contrast to Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s claim in the interim budget for 2024-25, where she stated that the Skill India Mission had trained 1.4 crore youth and upskilled and reskilled another 54 lakh.
Additionally, during a public rally in Bihar’s Aurangabad as part of the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra on February 15, Kharge scrutinized the BJP-led government’s job creation and economic management. He questioned the whereabouts of the two crore jobs promised by Prime Minister Modi and the alleged unfulfilled promise of transferring Rs 15 lakh to every citizen. Highlighting the country’s increasing debt, which he claimed rose from Rs 55 lakh crores during the UPA regime to Rs 185 lakh crores under Modi’s leadership, Kharge cast doubt on the government’s economic policies.
These statements from the Congress President reflect his growing concern about the effectiveness of government programs in skilling the youth and managing the nation’s economy, underscoring a critical political discourse on national development and employment generation in India.