By Suresh Unnithan
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s much-vaunted anti-corruption slogan “na khaunga, na khane doonga” — “I will neither take bribes nor allow anyone to take them” — has increasingly come under fire as a mere electoral “jumla,” an empty rhetorical flourish. Launched with fanfare in 2014 to contrast his administration with previous governments plagued by scams, the pledge promised zero tolerance for graft. Yet, over a decade later, in December this year, a series of high-profile audits, scandals, and policy controversies reveal a pattern of systemic irregularities, favouritism toward select industrialists, opaque funding mechanisms, and minimal accountability in flagship programs. The latest blow comes from the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG)’s December 2025 Report No. 20, which exposes deep-rooted failures in the Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY), India’s marquee skill development initiative. Far from isolated lapses, these issues echo broader criticisms of cronyism, data manipulation, and unpunished mismanagement across multiple schemes, casting serious doubt on the sincerity of Modi’s anti-corruption crusade.
PMKVY, rolled out in 2015 under the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) via the National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC), aimed to train and certify millions of youth to bridge employability gaps. Across its first three phases (2015–2022), it had an outlay of ₹14,450 crore, with ₹10,194 crore released and ₹9,261 crore utilized. Targets included training 1.32 crore candidates and certifying 1.10 crore — roughly 83% achievement on paper. However, the CAG audit, covering July 2015 to March 2022, uncovers pervasive fraud-enabling flaws rather than mere inefficiencies.
Data integrity on the Skill India Portal was catastrophically compromised. For PMKVY 2.0 and 3.0, bank account details were missing, blank, null, or “N/A” for 90.66 lakh of 95.90 lakh candidates — a staggering 94.53%. Among the rest, anomalies included 12,122 identical accounts linked to 52,381 beneficiaries, fake entries like “11111111111,” “123456,” single digits, text strings, names, addresses, or special characters. Such records defeated direct benefit transfers and invited ghost beneficiaries. Electronic IDs, contacts for candidates, trainers, and assessors were incomplete or unreliable, with no proper data retention policy. High-resolution photos and videos of sessions or ceremonies were often absent, preventing verification of actual training.
Ground-level inspections in eight states — Assam, Bihar, Jharkhand, Kerala, Maharashtra, Odisha, Rajasthan, and Uttar Pradesh — revealed closed or non-functional centres lacking infrastructure. Aadhaar-enabled biometric attendance was frequently missing or non-operational. Identical photos were submitted for multiple beneficiaries across centres in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Maharashtra, and Rajasthan, suggesting fabricated enrolments. The Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) component, especially Best-in-Class Employer variant, suffered weak proposal scrutiny, poor monitoring, and unreliable documentation. Certifications went to non-qualifying employers, and Kerala partners submitted fake placement proofs.
Financially, the picture was equally grim. NSDC retained interest improperly (₹12.16 crore recovered), overcharged administrative expenses under PMKVY 1.0 (₹24.13 crore), and mishandled state-level disbursements — ₹277.40 crore (20.09%) of ₹1,380.87 crore remained unutilized by March 2024. DBT delays left ₹40 crore unpaid in PMKVY 1.0 due to faulty details. No National Skill Development Plan aligned training with market needs, and beneficiary selection ignored age, education, or experience checks, enabling ineligible inclusions.
While the CAG frames these as systemic vulnerabilities rather than quantified theft, the scale suggests massive leakage. With 94.53% invalid records and average training costs of ₹10,000–15,000, even conservative estimates imply thousands of crores potentially diverted to ghosts or frauds. Add unutilized funds, recoveries, and fabricated placements, and public money swindled likely runs into billions. No specific culprits — training partners, NSDC officials, or state implementers — have faced prosecution or punishment as of late 2025. The government acknowledged the report and touted PMKVY 4.0 improvements (launched 2023), but detailed actions remain absent.
This is not an outlier. Similar CAG findings plague other schemes. In Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana-Gramin (PMAY-G), recent reports highlight ineligible beneficiaries receiving funds, data inaccuracies, and priority violations favouring non-deprived groups over SC/STs in states like Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. Ayushman Bharat saw payments to deceased patients and database discrepancies. Infrastructure like Bharatmala and Dwarka Expressway faced cost escalations (up to 1400% in some cases), tender violations, and fund diversions worth crores.
In sum, the CAG’s PMKVY exposé, alongside patterns in housing, health, infrastructure, and funding scandals, portrays a government where anti-corruption vows ring hollow. Public funds appear vulnerable to mismanagement and potential fraud, with little accountability for perpetrators. As 2025 ends, Modi’s slogan increasingly appears as political theater — a jumla that promised integrity but delivered persistent questions about whose interests are truly served.
