Rural youth face gaps in access to internships, apprenticeships: Govt

Srinagar, Sep 25: The Jammu and Kashmir government has acknowledged gaps in access to internships, fellowships and apprenticeships for youth, particularly in rural and far-flung areas, while informing the Legislative Assembly that several platforms and schemes are already in place to expand opportunities.
The disclosure came in response to a question by Budgam MLA Aga Syed Muntazir Mehdi in the Legislative Assembly.
According to the Higher Education Department, internships have been integrated into the Four-Year Undergraduate Programme (FYUGP) under NEP-2020, with skill-based, research or industry internships carrying 2–4 credits and being mandatory for undergraduate students across J&K.
The government, said higher education institutions are also being onboarded onto the National Apprenticeship Training Scheme (NATS) and AICTE Internship Portal, while schemes including PMSSS, Pragati, Svanath, Saksham and the National Scholarship for Post Graduate Studies are providing financial and educational support.
Under PMSSS, a total of 14,526 beneficiaries were recorded in 2024-25, 14,411 in 2025-26 and 13,794 in 2026-27 across Jammu and Kashmir. The government also reported 803 beneficiaries under the National Scholarship for Post Graduate Studies in 2023-24, 766 in 2024-25 and 455 in 2025-26, with applications for 2026-27 under process.
The department said it is working towards a more centralised information system by integrating institutional career guidance and placement cells with the National Career Service (NCS) and AICTE/NATS dashboards. It also cited the SIGMA portal and Android application developed by the Directorate of Colleges as channels for disseminating information about scholarships, fellowships, apprenticeships and skill-development programmes.
Among the gaps identified by the department are a limited local industrial footprint, creating geographical and industry-academia gaps; inadequate awareness and digital reach regarding national fellowships and apprenticeships in rural and far-flung colleges; and the need for more industry-aligned practical skill training.
As corrective measures, the government said industry-aligned vocational/minor courses are being introduced under NEP-2020, an implementation plan is being worked out to integrate NATS/NAPS into the FYUGP curriculum, free skill-development initiatives are being rolled out with NIELIT and NSDC, and MoUs with local industries, municipal bodies and PSUs are being pursued to create localised apprenticeship opportunities. (KNO)