National Action Plan for Skill Development of Persons with Disabilities

What is the National Action Plan for Skill Development of Persons with Disabilities?

The National Action Plan for Skill Development of Persons with Disabilities (NAP-SDP) is a scheme of the Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities (DEPwD), which functions under the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment. NAP-SDP funds free vocational skill training for persons with disabilities: often referred to as divyangjan, so they can gain employment or start their own livelihood.

According to DEPwD, persons with disabilities face additional barriers in the open skilling system, from inaccessible training centres to job roles that are not adapted to their needs. NAP-SDP addresses this by empanelling training providers, identifying job roles suitable for different disability types, and delivering the training free of cost to the candidate.

Key features

• Free skill training for persons with disabilities.
• Delivered by Empanelled Training Partners (ETPs) and government institutes.
• Job roles aligned with Sector Skill Councils and adapted for divyangjan.
• Enrolment through the PM-DAKSH-DEPwD portal.
• Financial support to training partners governed by the Common Norms for skill development schemes.

As of the DEPwD skill-development portal, training is delivered through a network of Empanelled Training Partners along with National Institutes, Composite Regional Centres (CRCs), the National Trust and recognised special schools.

Who is eligible for NAP-SDP training?

You can enrol if:

• You are a person with a benchmark disability as defined under the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act.
• You hold a valid disability certificate or Unique Disability ID (UDID).
• You fall within the eligible age range set for the course you choose.
• You meet any minimum educational qualification that a specific job role requires.

You cannot enrol if:

• You do not have a disability certificate or UDID, NAP-SDP is exclusively for persons with disabilities.
• You are outside the age range notified for the course.
• You do not meet a job-role-specific qualification where one applies.

There is no income ceiling for candidates. The scheme is targeted by disability status rather than family income, and courses are matched to the type of disability so that the training and eventual job role are realistic for the candidate.

What documents are required?

How to apply for NAP-SDP skill training

1. Obtain a valid disability certificate or UDID from the designated medical authority if you do not already have one.
2. Visit the PM-DAKSH-DEPwD portal and register using your Aadhaar and disability details.
3. Browse the available courses and training centres, and pick a job role suited to your disability type and interest.
4. Enrol online in the chosen course and submit your documents for verification.
5. The Empanelled Training Partner confirms your batch, training schedule and centre.
6. Complete the training and assessment; certification and placement support follow as per the course design and the Common Norms.

Because the list of courses, centres and training partners changes over time, check the current openings on the PM-DAKSH-DEPwD portal before you enrol.

What support does NAP-SDP provide?

NAP-SDP delivers the training free of cost to candidates. The scheme reimburses training and assessment costs to Empanelled Training Partners as per the Common Norms for skill development schemes, and candidates may receive support such as a stipend, conveyance or boarding allowance where the norms provide for it. Exact support depends on the course, the training partner and the candidate's disability type, so confirm what applies to your batch at the time of enrolment.

The real value to the candidate is the certified, job-linked training and the placement or self-employment support that follows, rather than a direct cash transfer.

Help and where to verify details

• DEPwD contact: 011-24365019 (Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities)
• Official website: depwd.gov.in, Skill Development
• Enrolment portal: PM-DAKSH-DEPwD
• Scheme listing: myScheme portal reference nap-sdp

Training under NAP-SDP is free. No agent can charge you to secure a seat, and enrolment is handled only through the official DEPwD portal and its empanelled partners.

How to check your application status

NAP-SDP does not run through a single centralised tracking dashboard the way a cash-transfer scheme does, so status checking depends on where you are in the process.

1. Right after enrolling: Log back in to the PM-DAKSH-DEPwD portal with the same credentials you used to register. Your dashboard shows whether your enrolment is pending verification, confirmed, or has been placed into a batch.
2. While waiting for a batch: Batch allocation is done by the Empanelled Training Partner (ETP) you enrolled with, not by DEPwD directly. If your portal status still shows "pending" after a few weeks, contact the training centre or ETP listed against your enrolment; they can tell you when the next batch for your chosen job role starts.
3. If your documents are under verification: The portal typically flags a document-related hold separately from a batch-allocation hold. Check which of your uploaded documents (disability certificate/UDID, Aadhaar, age proof) is marked incomplete or unverified, and re-upload a clearer copy if needed.
4. By phone: Call the DEPwD helpline at 011-24365019 with your registered mobile number or enrolment reference if the portal status is unclear or has not updated for a long time.
5. Once training starts: Status tracking shifts to your training centre. Attendance, assessment results and certification are managed by the ETP, so follow up with the centre coordinator rather than the DEPwD portal for these updates.
6. For stipend or reimbursement (where applicable): If your course carries a stipend or conveyance support under the Common Norms, ask your training centre for the disbursement schedule; DEPwD does not run a separate payment-tracking tool for this.

Because enrolment, batch confirmation and payments involve DEPwD, the ETP and sometimes a national institute, keep your enrolment ID and registered mobile number handy every time you follow up. Quoting these gets you a faster answer than describing your case from memory.

Common reasons for rejection

• No disability certificate or UDID, or an expired one. NAP-SDP is restricted to persons with a benchmark disability. An application without a valid certificate, or with one that has lapsed or is under renewal, gets rejected. Fix: obtain or renew the certificate from the designated medical authority before enrolling, and use the UDID number if you have one since it is verified more easily online.
• Aadhaar details do not match the disability certificate or other documents. A mismatch in name, date of birth, or spelling between Aadhaar and the disability certificate is a common reason enrolment gets stuck at verification. Fix: get the discrepancy corrected in either Aadhaar or the certificate before you apply, rather than after submission.
• Age falls outside the range set for the chosen course. Each job role and course has its own eligible age band, and candidates outside it are turned away even if they otherwise qualify. Fix: check the age criteria for the specific course on the portal before selecting it, and pick a course whose age band you actually fall within.
• Educational qualification does not meet the job role's minimum. Some job roles set a minimum qualification (for example, a certain class passed), and candidates without it are not enrolled into that specific course. Fix: choose a job role that matches your actual qualification level, or complete the required qualification first.
• Course or centre is already full, or has closed enrolment. Because seats and batches are limited and released periodically by each Empanelled Training Partner, a late application to a popular course can be rejected simply for lack of capacity. Fix: check the portal regularly for new course openings and apply as soon as a batch opens rather than waiting.
• Disability type does not match the job role's requirements. Job roles under NAP-SDP are designed around specific disability categories, and a candidate whose disability type is not suited to a given role's physical or sensory demands may not be enrolled into it. Fix: consult the course description or your training centre before applying, and pick a job role explicitly designed for your disability type.
• Incomplete or unclear document uploads. A blurry scan, a wrong file, or a missing mandatory document (disability certificate, Aadhaar, or age proof) causes enrolment to stall at the verification stage rather than being formally accepted. Fix: review each uploaded document on the portal before submitting and replace any unclear scan.