Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Kendra

The Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Kendra (PMKK) is an initiative of the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship. They are state-of-the-art, visible and aspirational model training centres that are set up in almost every district throughout the country to ensure coverage of all parliamentary constituencies. The PMKK initiative focuses on the creation of standardised infrastructure for delivery of skill development training which is equipped to run industry-driven courses of high quality with a focus on employability and to create an aspirational value for skill training. This article talks about the Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Kendra (PMKK) and its various essentials.

Objectives

The following are the primary objectives of the Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Kendra (PMKK).

To establish benchmark institutions that demonstrate aspirational values for competency-based skill development training.
To focus on the elements of quality, sustainability and to maintain connections with stakeholders in skills delivery process.
To transform the kendras from a mandate-driven footloose model type to a sustainable and institutional model type.

PMKK Stakeholders

Any loan assistance for the PMKK project will only be sanctioned to any form of the separate legal entity including, but not limited to, a Company/ Society/ Trust as per the process, applicable laws and guidelines. An entity which has been barred by the Central Government, or any State Government, Statutory Authorities or Public Sector Undertaking from participating in any project will not be eligible to submit a proposal either by itself or through any of its Associates.

Training Providers

An applicant entity must have a positive net-worth at the point of application. The only exception is for a Special Purpose Entity created for a partnership with the National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) where the past financials of the parent entity may be considered. In such cases, the audited financial statements of the entity are to be submitted.
Prior experiences of training under any Central or State Government-funded schemes or CSR/ Fee-based training programs would be a bonus.
The applicant and associated promoters and entities should not have made any defaults in repayment of amounts or loans due to the NSDC, as on the date of evaluation of the application.

Corporates

Any entity with a positive net worth that meets any two of the following criteria mentioned below will be considered as a Corporate under the PMKK for the project.

Entity with an average annual turnover of more than INR 200 Crores for the last 3 financial years.
Entity listed on the BSE and the NSE.
Entity with a rating of A- and more.
Entity with 1000 or more direct employees.

NOTE: The Corporate must be the lead applicant for the PMKK proposal, and its primary business should not be skill development.

PSUs and SPSUs

Public Sector Undertakings (PSU) and State Public Sector Undertakings (SPSU) must meet the following criteria to be a part of the PMKK project.

Central PSUs: Must have an average annual turnover of minimum INR 200 Crores in the last financial year.
SPSUs: Must have an average annual turnover of minimum INR 50 Crores in the last financial year.
The Undertaking must have a positive net worth in any two years out of the last three financial years.

Industry Associations

Industry Associations must meet the following criteria to be a part of the PMKK project.

Member Base should have either of the following:
- More than 500 Individual Members
- More than 100+ MSME Members
- More than 10+ Large Scale Members with an annual turnover of more than INR 200 Crores
- Federations of more than 25 associations
It has to remain operational for a minimum of 3 years as the date of registration will be considered for estimating the date of commencement of operations. It should also have the following:
- Corpus Fund of INR 5 Crores or 5 members with a net worth of INR 10 Crores each.
- Positive net worth in any two years out of the last three financial years.

Infrastructure

The following are the details of the Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Kendra (PMKK) project for infrastructure.

Centre Category

The main categories of PMKK centres are determined based on the district population. The minimum area required for each category is provided below:

Serial Number	Category of Centres	District Population Range (for age group of 15-35 years)	Number of Districts	Minimum Area proposed for each centre (in Sq. Ft)
1	Category A	Above INR 4 Lakhs	437	8,000
2	Category B	1 Lakh to 4 Lakhs	178	5,000
3	Category C	Below INR 1 Lakh	68	3,000

NOTE: For Corporate Centres, the centre size shall be applicable as per the PMKK category given above. PMKKs is required to maintain a minimum infrastructural and branding norms, as mentioned in the Annexures.

Sector and Mandate

The table given below depicts the sectors-wise requirements and the minimum training required in the PMKK project:

Serial Number	Sector/ Mandate Description	Category A	Category B	Category C
1	Minimum number of Sectors	2	2	1
2	Minimum number of Traders	5	3	2
2A	Minimum Manufacturing Trades	2	1	1
3	Minimum annual mandate under PMKVY or any other schemes under MSDE	1000	750	500

NOTE: Corporates can only run trades in the sector to its area of operation, and are mandated to train a minimum of 500 candidates every year irrespective of their Centre Category under the PMKVY or any its successor schemes mandated by the MSDE.

Branding

Every PMKK Centre should have standard dimensions in terms of design and branding theme. These centres are required to adhere to the branding guidelines set by the NSDC.

Biometric Attendance

Attendance of every trainee and trainers are mandated to record with an Aadhaar-enabled biometric machine at every PMKK. Therefore, for monitoring and recording attendance, specific guidelines have to adhere to all PMKKs.

Location

A PMKK should ideally be located nearby or at a walking distance from a major road such as a highway or main market road, close to a public transport facility such as a bus stand, railway station or metro station, along with adequate street lighting and public crowd and movements. The NSDC reserves the final right to accept or reject a proposed location on the location sign-off visit.

Equipment

PMKKs are required to deploy the latest training equipment and tools according to the SSC specifications such as smart classrooms and biometric attendance. Technology should be used as a training aid and assistance equipment.

Hostel Facilities

Hostel Facilities are to be determined as per the guidelines of the PMKVY or other schemes of interventions of the MSDE.

Counselling, Mobilisation and Placement

Spaces specifically for counselling, mobilisation and placement should be allocated exclusively and be used for tests, counselling parents and aspirants, to coordinate placements with employers and so on.

Smart Classrooms

A PMKK has to have a minimum of one classroom that is equipped with audio and visual facilities along with internet connectivity to conduct the following:

Virtual Training
Interactive Sessions
Industry Seminars and Webinars

Centre Inspection

Before the commencement of a PMKK with its first batch, each training centre will be validated for its compliance against necessary infrastructure and branding guidelines. If no adversities are reported, the centre will be recommended to the NSDC for further allocations under PMKVY. Alternatively, they shall further be mandated to comply with essential infrastructure norms defined by the relevant scheme.

Financial Support

The following are the financial aspects of the Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Kendra (PMKK) program.

Capital Expenditure

Support for funding shall be a secured loan for a PMKK establishment:

NSDC will offer a secured loan up to a maximum of INR 70 Lakhs per kendra at an applicable rate of interest as per the category of the district. The repayment period of 4 years will be applicable, including 1 year of the moratorium period.

Serial Number	Category of Districts	Interest Rate	Centre Size
1	A	6%	8000
2	B	6%	5000
3	C	3%	3000
4	Difficult (spread across the above three categories)	0%	As per the above categories

The required investment for this project would be the capital investment funds as are necessary for setting up the kendra. NSDC assistance will not be offered for the creation of immovable property such as land, building, and so on.
Loan towards capital expenditure is capped at INR 70 Lakhs maximum for each PMKK. The following components are considered to be a part of the capital expenditure:
- Training infrastructures, including the purchase of machinery and equipment.
- Training aid and other associated items.
- Internal renovation of the centre.
Additional loans will be provided for the utilisation of pre-fabricated structures to set up a kendra. This will be over and above the existing loan facilities, which are capped at INR 70 Lakhs maximum for each PMKK. The facility for additional loans will be provided by the NSDC and shall be capped at a maximum of 75% of the project setup cost or INR 60 Lakhs, whichever is higher. The amount of loan and the eligibility of an applicant shall be decided on a case to case basis by the Sub Committee and Steering Committee.
Promoter contributions should be a minimum of 25% of the project's cost and shall be through a fresh infusion in the form of share capital/ cash/ interest-free sub-ordinated loan from promoters/ contribution in the form of a non-government grant to the project.
The loan is to be repaid within 4 years or earlier, which also includes 1 year of principal moratorium period from the date of disbursement of the loan amount.
Repayments shall be computed post one year of the disbursements and shall be distributed in eight to twelve equal quarterly payments.
The scheduling of the disbursement should take place in two actions as follows:

Serial Number	Stage	Condition	NSDC Contribution of its share	TA Contribution to its share
1	Location Sign-Off	Subject to compliance with pre-disbursement conditions	40% for each centre	40% for each centre
2	Super Structure Sign-Off	Subject to compliance with pre-disbursement conditions	60% for each centre	60% for each centre

A Training Provider shall provide a Bank Guarantee for a year for INR 10 Lakhs, one time-refundable amount, at the time of agreement as part of the PMKK contract.
The capital assistance extended to Training Providers shall be in the form of a loan protected by an asset placed in lien with the NSDC.
Additionally, the NSDC shall also have the following charges against the loan:
- First charge on the assets of the project.
- First charge on cash-flows of the project.
- Charge on the IP of the project.
The Training Provider shall also offer personal and corporate guarantees along with post-dated cheques of appropriate repayment amounts. Based on the evaluation, the NSDC shall reserve the right to seek any additional security over and above 30% in the form of collateral for proposals entailing higher risks.
The NSDC reserves the right to determine the final loan amount to be disbursed against each centre. Loans offered to a particular training provider shall be one-time if the proposal has been approved.
Each training provider is required to maintain a separate account for each PMKK in a scheduled commercial bank were only financial transactions of the centre are to take place.
Fund release during the setup phase will be according to the milestone completion verified by the NSDC and all fund release for training will be as the applicable project guidelines.

Operations Support

Dedicated training numbers shall support the sustainability of a PMKK under the PMKVY or its successor schemes or any other scheme under the MSDE. Each PMKK shall be offered a training mandate for 3 years under the PMKVY scheme. The PMKK will not be allowed to operate in any other Central, or State Government sponsored skill training programs apart from those under the purview of the MSDE. The PMKK may operate under any fee-based training program or programs sponsored under the CSR or Industry Support. However, it should ensure that a minimum training mandate as per the PMKK category is fulfilled under the PMKVY or its successor schemes or any other scheme under the MSDE. However, for fee-based programs, the courses should be exclusive from those schemes under MSDE or NSDC.