The Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) reported that India's overall Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR) for persons aged 15 years and above has remained stable, marginally easing from 59.6% in 2024 to 59.3% in 2025 according to the latest Periodic Labour Force Survey by the National Statistics Office.
Under the Skill India Mission, MSDE delivers skill training through various schemes including Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY), Jan Shikshan Sansthan (JSS), National Apprenticeship Promotion Scheme (NAPS), and Craftsmen Training Scheme (CTS) through Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs). The cumulative training numbers show PMKVY has trained 16,541,679 candidates since inception to 30.06.2026, JSS has trained 36,58,020 since 2018-19, NAPS has enrolled 52,98,397 since 2018-19, and CTS/ITIs have trained 1,07,42,151 during session 2018 to 2025.
Placement tracking under PMKVY's Short-Term Training component in versions 1.0, 2.0 and 3.0 (2015-16 to 2021-22) showed that out of 56.89 lakh certified candidates, 24.3 lakh were placed, representing a placement rate of 42.8%. PMKVY 4.0 has shifted focus to empower trained candidates through industry-relevant skill courses including On-the-Job Training.
The infrastructure includes 13,633 PMKVY 4.0 centers (Short-term Training and Special Projects), 294 JSS centers, 57,935 NAPS establishments, and 13,856 ITIs (3,328 Government and 10,528 Private) as of 30.06.2026.
MSDE has implemented several initiatives to align training with industry needs, including the National Council for Vocational Education and Training (NCVET) which has approved 10,209 qualifications (2,975 valid and active, 7,234 archived). The Directorate General of Training has partnerships with companies like IBM, Microsoft, Autodesk, AWS, and Shell for technical skills training. New age courses have been introduced in areas such as 5G Network, AI Programming, Cyber Security, Drone Technology, and Internet of Things.
Two Indian Institute of Skills have been established at Ahmedabad and Mumbai in Public Private Partnership mode, and 36 Sector Skill Councils led by industry leaders have been set up. The Pradhan Mantri Skilling and Employability Transformation through Upgraded ITIs (PM SETU) scheme aims to upgrade 1,000 Government ITIs (200 Hub ITIs and 800 Spoke ITIs) with smart classrooms, modern labs, digital content, and new industry-aligned courses.
The information was provided by Minister of State (Independent Charge) Shri Jayant Chaudhary in a written reply to the Lok Sabha.