Pradhan Mantri Skilling and Employability Transformation through Upgraded ITIs (PM-SETU) has completed one year today. The PM-SETU scheme of the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship was launched on 4th of October last year. The initiative seeks to strengthen industry-led governance, upgrade training infrastructure and promote demand-driven courses in line with evolving workforce requirements.

It aims to enhance the overall quality and relevance of vocational training by transforming Government India’s Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) into modern, industry-aligned training institutions. The scheme has a total outlay of over 60 thousand crore rupees, comprising 30 thousand crore rupees from the Centre, 20 thousand crore rupees from States and 10 thousand crore rupees from industry.

ITIs provide vocational training to equip youth with practical skills for employment and industry. Under the Craftsmen Training Scheme (CTS), training is offered through Government and Private Industrial Training Institutes in engineering and non-engineering trades. Its course duration varies from six months to two years, depending on the trade. The Directorate General of Training is the apex organisation responsible for the development and coordination of vocational training at the national level.

The total number of ITIs, including Government and Private, in the country has increased to over 13 thousand in 2026 from over nine thousand in 2014, indicating an increase of 42 percent. Further, enrolment in ITIs across the country has also increased to 14.70 lakh in the academic session 2025-26 from 9.51 lakh in the academic session 2014-15, indicating an increase of 54 percent.

At the national level, the Ministry has constituted a National Steering Committee (NSC) to provide overall direction for the scheme. Since its implementation, 850 ITIs have been identified, comprising 172 Hub ITIs and 678 Spoke ITIs. The NSC has also approved the transition of PM-SETU from its pilot phase to a nationwide rollout across all 200 identified ITI clusters. The rollout enables States and Union Territories to take up implementation based on industry readiness and implementation capacity. Approval has been given to Strategic Investment Plans for 14 ITI clusters under PM-SETU with an investment of over 3 thousand 446 crore rupees.