Two years of alleged inaction? Congress targets Modi govt over PM-DAKSH scheme

New Delhi: The Congress on Wednesday launched a sharp attack on the Narendra Modi government over alleged irregularities and implementation failures in the PM-DAKSH scheme, a Central initiative designed to provide skill training and employment opportunities to marginalised communities.

Congress general secretary in-charge of communications Jairam Ramesh accused the government of failing to implement the programme effectively for two years and leaving funds allocated in previous budgets unutilised. He claimed that the alleged lapses reflected the government's failure to deliver on its promises to disadvantaged sections of society.

Sharing a screenshot of a media report highlighting "serious lapses" in the implementation of the scheme, Ramesh questioned the government's commitment to employment generation and social welfare.

What is the PM-DAKSH scheme?

The Pradhan Mantri Dakshata aur Kushalta Sampann Hitgrahi (PM-DAKSH) Yojana is a Central sector scheme launched in 2020-21 to provide skill development training to people from socially and economically disadvantaged communities.

The programme aims to improve employability and help beneficiaries secure jobs or establish self-employment ventures by providing vocational training through recognised training institutions.

Its target beneficiaries include members of Scheduled Castes (SCs), Other Backward Classes (OBCs), Economically Weaker Sections (EWSs), Denotified and Nomadic Tribes, and sanitation workers, including waste pickers.

The initiative was designed to equip eligible individuals with practical skills and create pathways to sustainable livelihoods.

However, the Congress has alleged that the programme has failed to achieve its intended objectives because of shortcomings in implementation and the non-utilisation of allocated funds.

What has Congress alleged?

Ramesh accused the Modi government of prioritising publicity over the effective execution of welfare programmes.

"'Naam bade aur darshan chote!' The scheme bears the PM's name, yet on the ground, the results are -- much like his claims -- a big, fat zero," he wrote in Hindi on X.

He alleged that the government was more focused on advertisements and managing headlines than ensuring that schemes delivered tangible benefits to their intended beneficiaries.

According to Ramesh, the failure to implement PM-DAKSH for two years, along with the non-utilisation of funds earmarked in previous years, exposed another major shortcoming of the government.

He claimed that a programme intended to provide training, skills and employment opportunities to marginalised communities had been reduced to a bureaucratic exercise with little meaningful impact.

"A government that cannot even effectively implement a scheme -- one that bears the PM's own name and was launched with grand, lofty claims -- has no moral right to remain in power," Ramesh said.

'Time to pack your bags': Congress targets PM Modi

Escalating his criticism, Ramesh claimed that the Modi government had lost public confidence and suggested that its time in office was nearing an end.

"Modi-ji, your government has lost the trust of the people. Its expiry date is near; 'jhola uthane ka waqt aa gaya hai (it is time to pack your bags)'. How much longer will the Modi government continue to toy with the future of Gen-Z?" the Congress leader said.

He also questioned whether the alleged shortcomings in the scheme reflected political discrimination against communities that the programme was intended to support.

Ramesh asked whether the government was taking revenge on Scheduled Castes, OBCs, economically backward communities, and denotified, nomadic and semi-nomadic tribes after the BJP's Lok Sabha tally fell to 240 seats in the 2024 general election.