NEW DELHI — The Ministry of Rural Development is set to commence training under Deen Dayal Upadhyaya – Grameen Kaushalya Yojana (DDU-GKY) 2.0 across most States and Union Territories starting October 2026.
The Ministry reviewed execution readiness across 14 initial States/UTs—including Odisha, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, and Bihar—setting an immediate goal to induct 34,920 rural youth across 1,164 training batches next month.
Core Highlights of the DDU-GKY 2.0 Rollout
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Immediate Induction: 34,920 rural candidates across 1,164 batches starting training in October 2026.
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Phase 1 Sanctioned Target: 3,57,112 rural youth to be trained by December 31, 2027, across 14 reviewed States/UTs.
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National Target Allocation: Over 5.6 lakh targets across 1,200+ projects allocated by 24 States/UTs out of the total 31 participating States/UTs for the 2026–28 two-year cycle.
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Training Duration: Placement-linked skilling courses ranging from 3 months to 12 months for eligible rural youth.
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Deadline for Project Allocation: Participating States/UTs instructed to finalize target allocations to Project Implementing Agencies (PIAs) by October 31, 2026.
Digital Integration & Operational Infrastructure
The Ministry reviewed the deployment of the DDU-GKY 2.0 Integrated Portal, designed to manage the end-to-end project lifecycle, enhance digital tracking, and ensure operational transparency:
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Treasury Portal Integration: States/UTs were directed to complete portal integration with State Treasury systems by September 30, 2026, enabling automated online payments via the Grameen Kaushal Portal.
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Regional PIA Workshops: To onboard Project Implementing Agencies onto the digital platform, four regional hybrid workshops are scheduled for October 2026:
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Shillong: October 5, 2026
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Vijayawada: October 7, 2026
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Mumbai: October 9, 2026
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Dharamshala: October 16, 2026
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Financial & Administrative Review
Chaired by the Joint Secretary (Skills) and Director (Skills) alongside State CEOs and COOs via video conferencing, the review meeting noted that scheme expenditure is projected to increase significantly as training batches scale up from October 2026 onward.
