Parliament Question: Integration of traditional skills in Odisha

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF SKILL DEVELOPMENT AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 4263 ANSWERED ON 01.04.2026 INTEGRATION OF TRADITIONAL SKILLS IN ODISHA 4263 SHRI SUBHASISH KHUNTIA: Will the Minister of SKILL DEVELOPMENT AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP be pleased to state: (a) whether traditional and regional occupations in Odisha, such as handloom, handicrafts, fisheries and agro-processing, have been integrated into formal skill certification and Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) frameworks; (b) the number of persons from Odisha certified under such programmes during the last three years; (c) whether any entrepreneurship or credit linkage support has been extended to them, if so, the details thereof; and (d) whether any measure has been taken to enhance income generation through skill-market integration, if so, the details thereof and if not, the reasons therefor? ANSWER THE MINISTER OF STATE (INDEPENDENT CHARGE) IN THE MINISTRY OF SKILL DEVELOPMENT AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP (SHRI JAYANT CHAUDHARY) (a) to (b): Under the Government of India’s Skill India Mission (SIM), the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) delivers skill, re-skill and up-skill training through an extensive network of skill development centres under various schemes, viz. Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY), Jan Shikshan Sansthan (JSS), National Apprenticeship Promotion Scheme (NAPS) and Craftsman Training Scheme (CTS) through Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs), to all the sections of the society across the country including the state of Odisha. The SIM aims at enabling youth of India to get future ready and equipped with industry relevant skills including traditional and region specific occupations. PMKVY has both the short term training (STT) and Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) components for skill, re-skill and up-skill training. Under PMKVY, 4981 candidates have been certified in the job roles related to Agro-processing, Food Processing, Handicrafts & Carpets, and Textiles & Handlooms Sectors during the last three years and current year till 31st December 2025 in Odisha. Under JSS scheme, 74,508 candidates have been certified in the job roles pertaining to Handicrafts & Carpets, Textiles & Handlooms, Agriculture and Food Processing sector during the last three years and current year till 31.12.2025 in Odisha. Under CTS, 76 candidates have been certified in the job roles pertaining to Food Production (General) sector during the last three years in Odisha. Ministry of Micro Small & Medium Enterprises (MSME) launched PM Vishwakarma Scheme in September 2023 to provide end-to-end support to traditional artisans and craftspeople and to uplift their socio-economic status by providing them with skill upgradation training, access to modern tools, financial assistance through credit support, and market linkages to enhance their productivity and quality of products. MSDE is responsible for implementation of the skilling component of the scheme. Under skill development component of PM Vishwakarma, the basic and advanced training is provided along with the tool kits and credit support post training. Since the inception of the scheme, 84,777 artisans and craftspeople have been certified till 31st December 2025 in Odisha.(c) & (d): In addition to the Skill Development training, Government of India has taken various initiatives to promote an inclusive entrepreneurial ecosystem through entrepreneurship education, training, and advocacy. The details of various initiatives to promote an inclusive entrepreneurial ecosystem across India including Odisha are as under: ▪ Implementation of schemes/programmes for the entrepreneurship promotion like PM’s Employment Generation Programme; MSE-Cluster Development Programme; Scheme of Fund for Regeneration of Traditional Industries; Startup Village Entrepreneurship Program; PM Formalisation of Micro Food Processing Enterprises; Startup India; etc. ▪ With intent to build a strong ecosystem for nurturing innovation, startups and encouraging investments in the Startup ecosystem of the country, the Government launched the Startup India initiative in January 2016. The flagship Schemes namely, Fund of Funds for Startups (FFS), Startup India Seed Fund Scheme (SISFS) and Credit Guarantee Scheme for Startups (CGSS) support Startups at various stages of their business cycle. ▪ Further, to provide access to credit/loan to youth for establishing business enterprises or start-ups, the Government implements various schemes like Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana (PMMY), Stand-Up India, PM Vishwakarma, etc. ▪ The market linkages are supported through e-commerce platforms like Government e-Marketplace (GeM) and Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC). The Startup India’s MAARG (Mentorship, Advisory, Assistance, Resilience and Growth) portal is a one stop platform to facilitate mentorship for startups across diverse sectors, functions, stages, geographies, and backgrounds. ▪ MSDE through its autonomous institutions, i.e, National Institute for Entrepreneurship and Small Business Development (NIESBUD), Noida and Indian Institute of Entrepreneurship (IIE), Guwahati conducts Entrepreneurship Awareness Programme (EAP) and Entrepreneurship Development Programme (EDP) to promote entrepreneurship across the country. ▪ The entrepreneurial support programmes of NIESBUD, Noida, and IIE, Guwahati, are aligned with schemes like PMKVY 4.0, PM Vishwakarma, PM Janjati Adivasi Nyaya Maha Abhiyan (PM JANMAN), Dharti Aaba Janjatiya Gram Utkarsh Abhiyan (DAJGUA), and PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana. *****