The Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) will introduce the eligibility norms for internships under the PM Internship Scheme next week. The internship scheme is limited to students belonging to the economically weaker sections (EWS) having an annual income of less than Rs 8 lakh. Candidates who are enrolled in online and vocational training are eligible for the program, sources told BT TV.
Sources added that students who are currently employed cannot avail this internship scheme. Each selected intern will get Rs 5,000 per month, of which Rs 4,500 per month will be provided by the government and the remaining Rs 500 per month will come from the corporate social responsibility (CSR) funds of the company.
The Centre is also focused on developing a one-stop internship portal for all related queries, sources mentioned. Through this portal, the candidates will be able to apply for internships based on vacancies in the participating firms. It also includes a framework that matches applicants' skill sets with company requirements.
For this scheme, the Centre is likely to prioritise major CSR spenders like Reliance Industries (RIL), Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Infosys, HDFC Bank, ONGC, and NTPC. The scheme also includes a one-time grant of Rs 6,000 for candidates and annual stipend of Rs 54,000, amounting to a total of Rs 60,000 per intern.
Participating firms will have to bear the cost of training and contribute around 10 per cent of the monthly stipend from their CSR funds. In August, the MCA set up a dedicated panel to implement the proposed internship scheme and also began discussions with industry representatives on the model and details of the scheme.
The scheme is likely to be voluntary for companies and will look to include Top 500 companies based on average CSR spend in the last 3 years. The scheme was announced by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in her full budget for FY2024-25, which was presented in July.
While announcing the scheme, Sitharaman said: "Interns will gain 12 months of exposure to real-life busienss environments, diverse professions and employment opportunities." The scheme is aimed at a providing internship opportunities in top 500 companies to 10 million youth in the next 5 years, as per Sitharaman.
For the current fiscal, the Ministry of Corporate Affairs has been allotted Rs 2,000 crore.