Kaushalya Samriddhi Yojana

What is Kaushalya Samriddhi Yojana?

Kaushalya Samriddhi Yojana is a Chhattisgarh scheme announced in March 2023 to give economically weaker and unemployed women in the state financial support to take up skill training and start their own small enterprise. Reports at the time put the budget provision at about Rs 25 crore.

Read this before going further. Kaushalya Samriddhi Yojana has not been operationalised. As of this fact-check, the Chhattisgarh government has not published scheme guidelines, an eligibility list, a benefit amount, an application form or a portal for it. The Chhattisgarh State Skill Development Authority, the body that would run a scheme of this kind; lists no Kaushalya Samriddhi Yojana among its live programmes. The announcement was also made under the previous state government, and no successor notification has followed.

This page says that plainly because the alternative is worse. Several private websites carry "apply online for Kaushalya Samriddhi Yojana" pages with forms and registration links. None of those is a government route. Filling one hands your Aadhaar and bank details to an unknown party for a scheme that does not accept applications.

Who was Kaushalya Samriddhi Yojana meant for?

The announcement described the intended beneficiaries as:

• Women resident in Chhattisgarh.
• Women who are economically weak or unemployed.
• Women who want to start their own small business or self-employment activity.

Who cannot apply: at present, nobody can apply, there is no application route. No eligibility rule has been notified, so any list of criteria you see on a private website is invented. Do not act on it, and do not pay a fee against it.

What Chhattisgarh women can actually use today

Rather than wait on an unnotified scheme, these are the live Chhattisgarh routes for the same need. Each of them is running and accepts applications.

For free skill training

The Chhattisgarh State Skill Development Authority (CSSDA) runs NSQF-aligned skill training across the state, principally under the Mukhyamantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana. According to district administration listings, the scheme is open to every young person living in Chhattisgarh, and training is delivered through Livelihood Colleges in every district and through empanelled Vocational Training Providers. CSSDA's own portal reports over 8 lakh registered beneficiaries and around 4.95 lakh trained, with roughly 2.75 lakh recorded as employed.

For self-employment credit

• Chhattisgarh Mahila Kosh: small loans to women and women's self-help groups, through the Women and Child Development Department.
• Chhattisgarh Udyam Kranti Yojana, state margin-money and interest support for new micro-enterprises, through the District Trade and Industry Centre.
• Chhattisgarh Antyavasayi Cooperative Finance and Development Corporation: subsidised credit for SC, ST and OBC entrepreneurs.
• National Rural Livelihoods Mission (Bihan) — self-help group credit and livelihood support for rural women, through the block NRLM office.
• PM Vishwakarma and the PM Employment Generation Programme, central credit schemes running in Chhattisgarh alongside the state ones.

How to apply for skill training in Chhattisgarh

Since Kaushalya Samriddhi Yojana takes no applications, these are the steps for the live CSSDA training route that covers the same ground.

1. Open cssda.cg.nic.in, the Chhattisgarh State Skill Development Authority portal, and go to the candidate registration section.
2. Register with your Aadhaar number and mobile number, and verify the OTP sent to your mobile.
3. Complete your profile, education, district, and the trade or sector you want to train in.
4. Browse courses offered by Vocational Training Providers near you, or by the Livelihood College in your district, and apply to a batch that is open.
5. Visit the training centre for verification with your Aadhaar card, education certificates, residence proof and bank passbook.
6. Complete the course and the assessment to receive an NSQF certificate, which is what employers and credit schemes recognise.

For a self-employment loan instead of training, take the same documents to your District Trade and Industry Centre for Udyam Kranti, or to the District Women and Child Development office for Mahila Kosh.

Documents to keep ready

How to check whether the scheme has been notified

1. Open the circulars and notice board section of cssda.cg.nic.in and search for the scheme name.
2. Check the Chhattisgarh state portal, cgstate.gov.in, for departmental scheme listings.
3. Ask at the district Livelihood College or the District Employment and Self-Employment Guidance Centre, which receive scheme circulars directly.
4. Treat only a departmental circular as confirmation. A news report or a private website is not a notification.

Grievance and safety

• District Livelihood College and District Employment and Self-Employment Guidance Centre, for skill training queries and complaints.
• CSSDA, Raipur: contact details are published on cssda.cg.nic.in.
• Chhattisgarh state grievance portal, for written complaints.
• Report fraud. If anyone asks for money to enrol you in Kaushalya Samriddhi Yojana, report it to the district administration. Government skill training in Chhattisgarh is free, and no scheme that lacks a notified application route can accept an application from anybody.

This guide will be updated if and when the Chhattisgarh government notifies guidelines for Kaushalya Samriddhi Yojana.