The Indian government decided to subsidize a particular internship scheme, covering most of the costs with the support of CSR funds contributions from organizations. This decision is highlighted in the Union Budget 2024 as a new Internship Scheme for top 500 Indian companies. Moreso, this scheme is aimed at empowering one crore youths for a 12-month internship program. Do you want to know more about this scheme? Let’s dig deeper.
What Is The Subsidy Plan About?
The government came up with a plan to empower the youths with sustainable skills for the future. The plan is an internship scheme that will be for a certain set of individuals in the top 500 companies in India. Although the scheme is a voluntary one, it tends to foster a future-ready workforce in any organization.
This was later highlighted by the Union Budget for 2024 with a subsidy plan that entails provision for internship allowance. It was rolled out in the budget that the government will only provide INR 54,000 out of the proposed total monthly internship allowance of INR 60,000. Also, the government will cover the INR 6,000 for incidentals.
However, the organizations involved will provide for the remaining amount and other reasonable administrative expenses from CSR funds.
Who Is Eligible For The Internship Scheme?
This scheme is available for Indian youths within the age bracket of 21 to 24 years. Most importantly, the interested candidate is expected to be an unemployed person and not involved in any form of full-time education. In addition, candidates with qualifications like IIT, IIM, IISER, CA, or CMA will be allowed to take part in the internship scheme. Lastly, it is required that the no family member of the interested individual should be a government employee or assessed to income tax.
The Duration Of The Internship Scheme
The time duration of the internship will be 12 months. The organization involved is expected to provide interns with working experience of a skill relatively involved with the organization. The interested individual is expected to spend at least half of the time in the job environment.
The Selection Process For The Internship Scheme
There are selection processes that any interested candidate needs to pass through before he or she can be qualified. Below are the steps to be taken:
- Check the online portal assigned for the scheme.
- Click on the application made available under the scheme.
- The candidate in question must meet criteria such as lower employability.
- Then, wait for the result.
Afterward, the organization in question is expected to select their candidate from the available list on the portal based on the laid down criteria.
It has been noted that the Apprentices Act 1961 mandated that organizations should employ 2.5% of their workforce as apprentices. Moreover, it is uncertain whether the voluntary engagement of interns for the internship scheme will meet up with the statutory requirement under the Apprentices Act, of 1961. In essence, the benefit of this scheme is to help certain individuals and it tends to foster a future-ready workforce.