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(GIST OF KURUKSHETRA) Skilling For Future: Reaping Demographic Dividend for Atma Nirbhar Bharat

[December-2021]

Skilling For Future: Reaping Demographic Dividend for Atma Nirbhar Bharat

Context:

India has set an ambitious goal of becoming a $5 trillion economy. One of the pillars of such a transformation is its youth power. With nearly two-thirds of its population in the working-age group, India could benefit immensely from this demographic dividend provided the youth are empowered with the right skills.
The year 2014 marks an important milestone in the Indian skilling evolution when a dedicated ministry for skilling (MSDE) was launched- a vision to transform India into the skill capital of the world was set. Skill India mission and the recently launched National Education Policy 2020, with their several innovations and bold reforms, are concrete steps in this direction.
The integration of vocational education with school and higher education and skilling in futuristic technologies will play a defining role in creating a highly-skilled workforce which will make India Atma Nirbhar.

Skill India Mission: A Game Changer

The Mission has taken a systemic approach towards skill development and is responsible for convergence in skill development efforts between the Centre and States on the one hand and the industry needs and aspirations of the youth on the other. The mission took several innovative steps to bridge the gap between the skills that the industries needed and what was being offered in various skill training institutes in the country.

First, the mission gave a boost to the National Skill Development Corporation which was set up as a not-for-profit public limited company in a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model. The Government of India through the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) holds 49 percent of the share capital of NSDC, while the private sector has 51 percent of the share capital. This model helped in bringing private sector expertise and industry insights for developing a skilled workforce.
Second, the Government of India prepared the National Policy on Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, 2015 which recommended the creation of Sector Skill Councils (SSCs). This may be considered the most critical aspect of the Skill India Mission. SSCs are a professional standard-setting and capacity-building bodies comprising of representatives from public and private industries for various sectors such as the Agriculture Skill Council of India, Aerospace and Aviation Sector Skill Council, Automotive Skills Development Council, Tourism and Hospitality Skill Council, Hydrocarbon Sector Skill Council, etc. 36 such SSCs are operational today. Since the SSCs have a heavy presence of leading industry players of various sectors, they are uniquely placed to design a curriculum that is relevant for industry, offer internships, apprenticeships, and jobs to the candidates and set high-quality parameters to ensure a robust skilling ecosystem in the country. Their mandate includes the following.

Identification of skill development needs
Development of a sector skill development plan and maintaining skill inventory
Determining skills/competency standards and qualifications
Standardisation of affiliation, accreditation, examination, and certification

National Education Policy— 2020: A Catalyst for Vocational Education:

A National Committee for the Integration of Vocational Education (NCIVE), consisting
of experts in vocational education and representatives from across ministries, in collaboration with industry, has been recommended to oversee the integration and identification of domains based on skill gap analysis.

Secondary schools will also collaborate with ITIs, polytechnics, local industry, etc. Skill labs will be set up and created in the schools in a hub and spoke model which will allow other schools to use the facility of ITIs and polytechnics for skilling purposes.
‘Lok Vidya’, i.e., important vocational knowledge developed in India, will be made accessible to students through integration into vocational education courses.
Higher Education Institutions will also be allowed to conduct short-term certificate courses in various skills including soft skills which are highly sought after in the industry.
Every higher education institution and even every school or school complex will aim to have Artist(s)-in-Residence to expose students to art, creativity, and the rich treasures of the region/country and also train the students in local crafts.

Conclusion:

India is one of the youngest nations in world. It is often touted as the next big economic power. 62 percent of its population is in the working-age (15-59 years) group which offers India a demographic advantage to leapfrog in a developed economy. However, the benefits of young demography could only be reaped if the concerned population is productive and skilled. India has launched the ambitious mission of Skill India to develop the full potential of its youth.
The National Education Policy 2020 will further catalyze this mission by bringing millions of youth under the ambit of vocation education in the coming decade. India has taken a systemic approach to offer vocational training across a spectrum of skills - masonry to coding to artificial intelligence -through the power of public-private partnership.
The newly launched PMKVY 3.0 which focuses on ‘vocal for local’, decentralised planning and cooperation with States is set to lead India towards self-sufficiency (AtmaNirbhar) and transform India into the skill capital of the world.