PM VIKAS — Skilling, Education & Women Entrepreneurship for Minorities

PM VIKAS — Pradhan Mantri Virasat ka Samvardhan — is a Central Sector Scheme of the Ministry of Minority Affairs. It came into being by folding five older initiatives into one umbrella: Seekho Aur Kamao, Nai Manzil, Nai Roshni, USTTAD and Hamari Dharohar.

The people it serves are India's six notified minority communities — Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains and Parsis. Support reaches them along several tracks: skilling for jobs and self-employment, schooling for those who left education early, leadership and business building for women, and linkages that connect trainees and artisans to credit and to buyers.

A parallel goal is keeping heritage alive. The scheme backs traditional crafts and art forms so they stay a source of income instead of fading away, and it dovetails with other government programmes so a beneficiary can draw more than one kind of help at the same time.

Funding is grant-based, so nobody is asked to hand over a stake in anything they build. Intake is rolling, with no fixed closing date, and interested candidates apply through the SIDH Portal at skillindiadigital.gov.in. Scheme information is also published on the Ministry's own PM VIKAS website.

• Central Sector Scheme of the Ministry of Minority Affairs, created by merging five earlier schemes.
• Open to the six notified minority communities: Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains and Parsis.
• Grant-based and non-dilutive — no equity taken, no repayment required.
• Age 14–45 for skilling and education; 18–45 for women leadership and entrepreneurship.
• At least 33% women in skilling, 50% in education, 100% in the women's track; 3% seats reserved for PwDs.
• Rolling intake with no deadline — apply through the SIDH Portal.

Who can apply

• Indian nationals who belong to one of the six minority communities notified by the Centre: Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains or Parsis.
• Applicants for the skilling and education components must be aged 14 to 45 years.
• Applicants for the Women Leadership and Entrepreneurship component must be aged 18 to 45 years.

Reservation and inclusion norms

• Women must account for at least 33% of beneficiaries in skilling and 50% in education. The women's leadership and entrepreneurship track is 100% women.
• 3% of seats are reserved for Persons with Disabilities (PwDs) across every component.
• Non-minority (EWS) candidates can also participate — up to 25% of seats in Traditional Skilling and up to 15% in the remaining components, a provision meant to encourage solidarity between communities.

Eligibility here is assessed on the individual's community, age and nationality, so the scheme speaks to candidates directly rather than to registered companies or startup entities.

PM VIKAS — Skilling, Education & Women Entrepreneurship for Minorities is open to startups at any stage. It is open to startups registered anywhere in India.

PM VIKAS — Skilling, Education & Women Entrepreneurship for Minorities accepts applications on a rolling basis — there is no fixed cut-off date, so eligible startups can apply at any time. Because rolling programmes can pause without notice, confirm the window is still open on the official site before you start.

What beneficiaries receive

• Skill development in traditional crafts as well as in modern sectors, aimed squarely at improving employability.
• Stipend support for trainees for the duration of their training.
• Education support that lets school dropouts finish 8th, 10th and 12th standard through open schooling.
• Leadership and entrepreneurship training for minority women, along with the handholding needed to actually set up their own enterprises.
• Credit facilitation and market linkages, including integration with e-commerce platforms, for artisans and entrepreneurs.
• Promotion of traditional arts, crafts and cultural heritage, so heritage skills remain viable livelihoods.

The scheme is grant-based and non-dilutive — nothing is taken in equity and nothing has to be repaid. The amount varies by component rather than being a fixed published figure, and much of the value arrives as funded training, stipends, education and linkages rather than as a lump-sum cheque. Benefits are also structured to converge with other government schemes.

PM VIKAS — Skilling, Education & Women Entrepreneurship for Minorities is offered by Ministry of Minority Affairs, a government body. As a government-backed grant, it is publicly funded and open to eligible startups across India.

There is no central competitive shortlisting round. Once a candidate registers on the SIDH Portal, completes e-KYC and shows interest in a batch, the file moves to the training partner or training centre running that batch.

• The training partner or training centre reviews the application and the candidate's suitability.
• On approval, an invitation is issued and the candidate must accept it through the portal to lock in enrolment.
• A candidate may show interest in up to five batches at a time.
• Progress can be checked in the "Applications" section of the dashboard.
• For the Women Leadership and Entrepreneurship component, candidates who demonstrate aptitude and leadership qualities are the ones specifically selected.

Before you apply to PM VIKAS — Skilling, Education & Women Entrepreneurship for Minorities, keep the following documents ready:

• A pitch deck or short business plan describing the problem, product and traction
• Company registration documents and PAN
• Founder identification (PAN / Aadhaar) and brief profiles
• Recent financial statements or projections
• Product details — a demo, prototype or working link if available

Exact requirements are confirmed on the official application portal — treat this as a preparation checklist.