How PM Internship Scheme will benefit top CSR spenders

The Government of India is planning to launch a comprehensive scheme for providing internship opportunities in top companies. The Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) is soon expected to publish a list of 500 companies which can participate in the Centre’s internship scheme, based on the average annual Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) expenditure of the previous three years, as per reports. The scheme was announced by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman during the Union Budget 2024-25.

This scheme will offer a chance to top spenders on Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) obligations, such as Reliance Industries, Tata Consultancy Services, HDFC Bank, ONGC, Infosys and NTPC to train more candidates. The government is preparing to launch the PM’s Internship scheme reportedly within a month.

PM Internship Scheme features

While presenting the Union Budget 2024-25 in Parliament in July this year, the Finance Minister had announced that the scheme will provide internship opportunities in 500 top companies to 1 crore youth in 5 years. They will gain exposure for 12 months to real-life business environment, varied professions and employment opportunities, she had said.

An internship allowance of Rs 5,000 per month along with a one-time assistance of Rs 6,000 will be provided to the youth. Companies will be expected to bear the training cost and 10 per cent of the internship cost from their CSR funds, the Finance Minister had announced.

The MCA will reportedly bring into effect the internship scheme portal by the end of this month. The portal will be operational once the companies submit the details of the internship positions available with them, as per reports. Applications for the scheme will be invited through the online portal.