Union Budget 2024: Roadmap for Employment Generation and Skill Development in India

The Union Budget for the fiscal year 2024-25 laid a roadmap towards ‘Viksit Bharat’ with special emphasis on bolstering education, employment, and skills development. The financial plan for this year has taken strides to address the challenges related to unemployment in the country by launching a comprehensive package of five innovative schemes, driving employment, skill development and various other opportunities for the next five years.

Let us have a look at the crucial areas and the important government schemes where the budget has made significant allocations this year.

The budget unveiled a significant allocation of  ₹1.48 lakh crore to empower the youth by enhancing their employability and prospects.

The Employment Linked Incentive (ELI) scheme introduced in the budget aims to support first-time employers, boost manufacturing jobs, promote skilling and internship opportunities, and provide employer support catering to the needs of 4.10 crore young Indians.

Here’s a list of the five Employment Linked Incentive (ELI) schemes announced in the Union Budget 2024:

1. First-Time Employment Support

The first scheme aims to encourage the transition to the formal workforce and provide financial stability in the initial phase of employment to first-time employers by providing freshers (with less than ₹1 lakh monthly salary) with a one-time subsidy of ₹15,000. The scheme is expected to cover about 1 crore employees only for 2 years.

2. Employer Support and Employment Generation

This policy encourages employers to hire additional employees to boost employment generation. Any company that increases employment from the baseline will be eligible under this scheme.

The government plans to reimburse up to ₹3,000 per month for two years towards EPF contributions made by employers for each additional employee hired. This policy is aiming to reduce the financial burden on employers and incentivize them to create new job opportunities.

3. Internship Scheme with Top Companies

The government is aiming to provide valuable work experience and exposure for 1 crore interns in top 500 companies for five years, with a stipend subsidy of ₹5,000 per month and one-time assistance of ₹6,000. Under the scheme, the companies are expected to provide the interns a hands-on experience on skills which the company is directly involved in.

4. Centrally Sponsored Skill Development Scheme

The skill development scheme is introduced to enhance skills and employability of the youths. It aims to provide skill development training to 20 lakh youths, for which the central government in collaboration with the state government and companies will deploy ₹60,000 crore to upgrade 1000 Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) by redesigning existing courses, launching new courses, and increasing capacity of the institutes.

5. Job Creation in Manufacturing

To boost job creation and expand the workforce by providing incentives in the manufacturing sector, the government introduced this scheme for both employees and employers based on their EPFO contributions.

Employers with a monthly salary of up to ₹1 lakh in manufacturing with a minimum of a three-year track record of EPFO contribution will be eligible for it. Under this scheme, subsidies will be paid for four years and will be divided between the employee and the employer equally.

The budget with its strategic focus on employment and skill development has set a progressive agenda. This framework for job creation reflects the government’s commitment to reduce unemployment, enhance employability and generate a skilled workforce, ultimately paving the way towards the nation’s economic growth and development.