FIRs lodged against 41 Skill India centres, 11 entities named in CAG report issued notices: Skill Development Minister Jayant Chaudhary in Parliament

Chaudhary also informed the House that the Centre had issued a tender last month to hire a forensic accounting institution affiliated with the Securities and Exchange Board of India to investigate the findings from the CAG report.

Union Minister of State for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (independent charge) Jayant Chaudhary informed the Rajya Sabha that cases have been filed against 41 Skill India centres, and 178 training partners have been found non-compliant with Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY) schemes, and 11 entities have been issued a show-cause notice.

The Indian Express reported on January 4 that the CAG had flagged major irregularities in the PMKVY between 2016 and 2022, ranging from anomalous bank accounts, repetition of photographs for multiple beneficiaries, pending payouts, and shuttered training centres. The report was tabled in Parliament in December 2025.

CAG had audited the implementation of the flagship scheme, which was launched in July 2015 to skill a large number of youth and provide employment pathways.

Chaudhary said in his detailed response that the CAG report was substantive but sought to point out that the operative period covered was 2016-2022, and that the scheme framework currently under implementation has already taken into account the auditor’s observations and recommendations.

On corrective and penal action, Chaudhary said that it is an ongoing concurrent exercise. “Each and every one of those observations and recommendations has actually already been implemented,” he said. Chaudhary added that the Centre also created a Kaushal Samiksha Kendra facility a year ago where all data is being collected and monitored in real-time. As part of a new virtual verification process, around 3,695 training centres were monitored virtually between September 2024 and October 2025, the MoS added.

Responding to supplementary questions on changing the scheme’s design for greater data and conducting third-party audits, Chaudhary said that outside the CAG audit process, the scheme was evaluated by NITI Aayog in October 2020. “They found 52 per cent of placed candidates who had completed training under the RPL (recognition of prior learning) component received higher salaries, or felt they would get higher salaries. 94 per cent of employers surveyed reported they would hire more candidates trained under the scheme, which directly speaks to the employability of those who were trained under the scheme,” Chaudhary said.