(GIST OF YOJANA) Skills, Employment and Human Resource
Development
[APRIL-2020]
Skills, Employment and Human Resource
Development
Introduction:
- The budget states that it has provided Rs. 99,300 crore for education
sector in 2020-21 and about Rs. 3,000 crore for skill development.
- However, since skills programmes are spread across different ministries,
the amount is actually higher.
- The budget also talks about improving the financial support mechanism
for capitalizing on foreign financing wherewithal.
- The budget has covered all the areas of education and skill development
comprehensively – beginning from the reforms required to the ground to the
ground level implementation with the help of integrated approach – and the
best part is that education and skill development have been made an integral
part of the sectoral growth strategies.
Two New Initiatives in This Budget:
- Focusing on the need for apprenticeship, the Budget announced two new
initiatives. The first was that 150 Higher Education Institutions would
start apprenticeship embedded degree/diploma courses by March 2021.
- Second, to increase apprenticeships within the country, it was proposed
to start a program where urban local bodies across the country would provide
internship opportunities to fresh engineers for a period up to one year.
Other Schemes:
- To address specific sectoral skills needs, it is proposed to set up a
National Police University, and a National Forensic Science University.
- In the medical field, it has been proposed to build a Medical College in
an existing district hospital in a PPP mode.
- Budget proposed that special bridge courses be designed by the
Ministries of Health, Skill Development together with professional bodies to
bring in equivalence. Another new initiative is the special thrust to
infrastructure-focused skill development opportunities.
- Supported by the National Infrastructure Pipeline covering 6,500
projects, infrastructure development will create the demand for skilled
workforce.
- A special Nirman Kaushal Vikas Yojana with an initial outlay of Rs. 50
crore is proposed. The two schemes – Skills Acquisition and Knowledge
Awareness for Livelihood Promotion (SANKALP) and Skill Strengthening for
Industrial Value Enhancement (STRIVE) are also quite significant.
- This is in addition to the outlay for continuation of the Pradhan Mantri
Kaushal Vikas Yojana Programme.
Conclusion:
- Developing a robust education and skill development infrastructure based
on the emerging needs is central to achieving a higher growth trajectory
that leads India to the $5 trillion economy goal quickly.
- The Budget for 2020-21 has taken significant strides in this direction.
