Rayagada: Implementation of the Pradhan Mantri Vishwakarma Yojana appears to have gone haywire in Rayagada district, leaving more than 5,000 applicants uncertain about the future of their applications and the scheme’s direction.
Launched September 17, 2023, the Centre-sponsored scheme aims to enhance the skills of individuals involved in traditional crafts, cottage industries, and rural trades.
The scheme covers 18 artisan categories, yet several key professions, including tailoring, masonry, and carpentry, have reportedly been excluded during the latest phase of verification.
This exclusion has led to confusion and concern among thousands who had already applied under these trades.
As a result, persons involved in these trades have stopped applying.
According to the District Industries Centre (DIC), as of May 2025, a total of 5,982 people had applied for benefits under the scheme in Rayagada district.
However, official data put up on the scheme’s website shows that only 12 applications have been uploaded and processed.
Twelve more candidates have been shortlisted for three rounds of verification, the DIC sources said. The application process involves several steps, including initial registration through the Common Service Centre (CSC) portal, verification at the gram panchayat level by sarpanches and municipal executive officers via the Gram Swaraj portal.
The second round involves further verification at the DIC and final approval from the Central authority. Of the 5,982 applications submitted, only 2,132 were forwarded to the DIC after initial verification by sarpanches.
The status of the remaining 3,825 applications is currently not visible on the website, with officials claiming that those records are available only in offline format.
This lack of transparency has sparked frustration among applicants, particularly in rural areas. Some local stakeholders argue that the scheme has lost direction in Rayagada.
Applicants who have been waiting for over a year said they have received no communication from the authorities about the status of their applications.
With the majority of applicants in the tailoring and masonry trades, there is growing public demand to reinstate these categories under the scheme and restart the verification process to ensure inclusion and fairness.
Renu Mishra, an applicant from JK Pur, said she had applied under the Vishwakarma Yojana to receive training in tailoring.
However, even after a year, there has been no communication regarding either the training or access to financial assistance.
“No information is being provided,” she lamented, adding, “With support or training through this scheme, I could help support my family.”
When contacted, Bijay Kumar Sahu, general manager of the DIC in Rayagada, acknowledged that there are multiple gaps in the scheme’s execution.
He stated that a list of such concerns was submitted to the state government a few months ago. He added that many applicants’ details are not reflected on the official website, which has stalled the beneficiary selection process.
“The website is managed by the Central authorities, and in many cases, local sarpanches fail to verify and forward the applications of eligible beneficiaries,” Sahu said.
As a result, many applicants’ files are not being processed further.
Responding to questions about the absence of new applications in trades like tailoring, carpentry, and masonry, Sahu mentioned that these occupations might have been removed from the scheme by the government.
PNN
