Mahindra, Max Life Insurance, Alembic Pharma take lead in PM internship scheme

New Delhi: Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd, Max Life Insurance Co. Ltd and Alembic Pharmaceuticals Ltd, have taken the lead in offering internships to the youth under the first phase of a new central scheme that rolled out on Thursday.

As of 11 am on Thursday, 1,077 internship opportunities were on offer under the Prime Minister’s internship scheme, according to a person with direct knowledge of the developments. The number is expected to increase in the coming days, said this person, who spoke on condition of not being identified.

Four states have joined the Prime Minister’s internship scheme initially—Maharashtra, Uttarakhand, Telangana and Gujarat. The government expects to shortlist about 100,000 candidates in the first (pilot) phase of the scheme, between now and 1 December, the person said.  

The scheme, which offers a ₹5,000 monthly financial assistance and a one-time payment of ₹6,000 to each intern, is mainly financed by the Union government. Companies are allowed to meet the cost of training interns as well as the ₹500 per intern that they have to contribute to the monthly financial assistance from their corporate social responsibility (CSR) funds.

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“As part of the Prime Minister’s Internship Scheme, the Mahindra Group will offer opportunities to interns across multiple businesses,” a spokesperson for the company said in response to a query from Mint, adding that the Mahindra Group was the “first to load internship profiles on the PMIS portal, with 2,100 interns in the first phase”. 

The spokesperson for the corporate affairs ministry, Alembic Pharmaceuticals, and Max Life Insurance did not immediately reply to queries emailed on Thursday evening. 

The one-year Prime Minister’s internship programme seeks to address the skill gaps in youngsters, give them corporate exposure, and make them more employable. The public-private partnership effort in making youngsters employable and help businesses find talent comes as India looks to tap a large working-age population.

Gaps in skills, however, pose challenges. The government has been taking steps to support sectors that are labour-intensive, such as textiles, while giving production incentives and research support for new-age industries. 

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Who can apply

The Prime Minister’s internship scheme is open to those in the age group of 21-24 years. Those who have passed high school, have a certificate from an industrial training institute, hold a diploma from a polytechnic institute, or are graduates in disciplines including arts, science, commerce, pharmacy and business administration are eligible to apply. 

Graduates from the Indian Institutes of Technology, the Indian Institutes of Management, National Law Universities, and professionally qualified individuals such as chartered accountants or those having MBBS degrees are not eligible to apply.

The internship scheme seeks to be beneficial to those from economically disadvantaged groups. Accordingly, if the collective income of the family members of a candidate exceeded ₹8 lakh in 2023-24, or if any member of the family is a permanent government employee, such candidates are not eligible to apply. 

The scheme can be accessed at www.pminternship.mca.gov.in, which is now open for partner companies to offer internship opportunities. It will be open for candidates to register in the second week of October. 

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