More than 72 lakh first-time employees have entered India’s formal workforce under the Pradhan Mantri Viksit Bharat Rojgar Yojana (PM-VBRY) in its first year, according to an official statement issued on 1 August. The Press Information Bureau note marks 12 months since the scheme began rolling out on August 1, 2025.
Nearly 30% of the beneficiaries are women, and more than 15 lakh have already received employment-linked incentives. The scheme ties employment to EPFO registration and routes benefits through direct transfers, a design meant to widen social security coverage while formalising jobs that would otherwise sit outside the organised sector.
Through a transparent, EPFO-administered framework, the scheme “strengthens workforce formalisation while creating opportunities for both employees and employers,” the official statement noted.
The programme runs from August 1, 2025 to July 31, 2027 with an outlay of ₹99,446 crore. Its stated ambition is to generate employment for over 3.5 crore people, including 1.92 crore first-time employees. PM-VBRY complements the National Manufacturing Mission and is aimed particularly at labour-intensive manufacturing, where formalisation gaps have historically been widest.
The incentive structure works in two parts. First-time employees earning up to ₹1 lakh a month are eligible for a one-time incentive equal to a month’s EPF wage, capped at ₹15,000, paid in two instalments. The first arrives after six months of service; the second after 12 months of continuous service and completion of a financial literacy programme. A portion of the incentive is parked in a designated savings instrument that the employee can withdraw later, a nudge towards long-term saving.
