Licence To Skill – GOI’s scheme for craftspeople is a good idea but its success critically depends on finding markets

Source: The post is based on the article “Licence To Skill – GOI’s scheme for craftspeople is a good idea but its success critically depends on finding markets” published in The Times of India on 18^th August 2023.

Syllabus: GS 2 – Government policies and interventions aimed at development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation.

Relevance: concerns with the PM Vishwakarma Scheme.

News: Recently, the government came up with the PM Vishwakarma Scheme.

What is the PM Vishwakarma Scheme?

Read Here: ‘Vishwakarma scheme will aid 30 lakh artisan families

It provides ₹13,000 crore over 5 years as concessional loans, mainly benefiting OBCs. Craftspeople with the relevant documents will be eligible for a loan of up to Rs 3 lakh.

What are the challenges with the scheme?

Market Access: The scheme focuses on preserving family-based traditional skills. However, the main obstacle is accessing markets because traditional practices often can’t match modern costs.

Hence, to be economically effective, the scheme needs to connect these skills to market value chains.

Modern Job Skills: The scheme’s soft loan approach will benefit many involved in traditional jobs, but India’s economic progress requires modern job skills.

Modern sectors align with the aspirations of young individuals from families with traditional occupations. However, Vishwakarma’s approach isn’t sufficient to create a workforce for a modern economy.

What can be the way ahead?

Preserving traditional skills is important for India’s cultural heritage. Hence, India could learn from Japan’s way of using fiscal resources and laws to keep their traditional skills alive while becoming a developed country.

Vishwakarma can support traditional craftspeople, but its success in the long run will depend on making a market where they don’t have to compete solely based on lower costs.