New Delhi, July 31 (IANS) In a bid to boost skilling in India, the government in the last five years has allocated over Rs 493 crore to the National Institute of Electronics and Information Technology (NIELIT), Union Minister of State for Electronics and Information Technology Jitin Prasada informed the Parliament.

In a written reply in the Lok Sabha, Prasada shared that “more than 43 lakh youth have been skilled across the country under NIELIT”.

NIELIT is an autonomous scientific society for skilling under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY).

“More than Rs 493 crore were allocated in funds for NIELIT since 2020-21. The highest was in 2024-25, amounting to Rs 1,53,08,52,398,” Prasada said.

“In comparison, Rs 1,45,38,07,249 was allocated in 2023-24,” he added.

The Minister also informed that currently “56 NIELIT Centers are operational”.

NIELIT also has 797 Accredited Training Partners (ATPs) and 9,275 affiliated facilitation centers across the country.

“NIELIT has trained a total of 43,60,759 candidates,” Prasada said.

These candidates have been trained under various degree/diploma level courses and skill-based courses (long-term and short-term).

Meanwhile, the government has also surpassed its digital literacy goal under the Pradhan Mantri Gramin Digital Saksharta Abhiyan (PMGDISHA). The programme has imparted digital literacy to 6.39 crore people between 2017 and 2024, exceeding the original target of 6 crore. It aimed to increase smartphone usage, internet penetration, and digital engagement in rural areas.

These individuals from rural households have been trained to send messages and attach files on mobile phones, among others.

Uttar Pradesh (1.45 crore) had the largest number of beneficiaries under the programme. It was followed by Bihar (74.12 lakh), Maharashtra (53.23 lakh), Madhya Pradesh (50.69 lakh), and Rajasthan (39.70 lakh).

The beneficiaries under the DISHA scheme also included field-level government functionaries, namely Anganwadi and ASHA workers, and authorised ration dealers.

–IANS

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