Skill Development - Schemes and Policies

What are the various schemes and policies pertaining to Skill Development in India?

India has made significant strides towards enhancing the skill development landscape in the country. The government has initiated several programmes to promote skill training and entrepreneurship, which aim to equip the workforce with relevant skills to meet the demands of the job market and contribute to the country's economic growth.

National Policy for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, 2015

• Objective: To meet the challenge of skilling at scale with speed and standard (quality). 
• Aim: To provide an umbrella framework to all skilling activities being carried out within the country, to align them to common standards, and link the skilling with demand centers. 
• The policy links Skills Development to improved employability and productivity.

National Education Policy 2020

The National Education Policy 2020 recognizes the importance of Skill Development in driving economic growth and recommends a multi-pronged approach. Some of the provisions include 

• Integration of vocational education and training into mainstream education at all levels.
• Vocational education to start in schools from the 6th grade and include internships.
• Establishment of dedicated vocational education institutions equipped with modern technology and infrastructure.
• Promotion of entrepreneurship and self-employment among students through setting up incubation centers in educational institutions.

National Skill Development Mission

• It was approved by the Union Cabinet in 2015 to create convergence across sectors and States in terms of skill training activities.
• The mission shall consolidate and coordinate skilling efforts, and expedite decision-making across sectors to achieve skilling at scale with speed and standards.
• Key institutional mechanisms for achieving the objectives of the Mission have been divided into three tiers, which will consist of:
  • Governing Council for policy guidance at the apex level.
  • Steering Committee. 
  • Mission Directorate (along with an Executive Committee) as the executive arm of the Mission.
• Seven sub-missions have been proposed initially to act as building blocks for achieving the overall objectives of the Mission. They are
  • Institutional Training and Infrastructure.
  • Convergence and Trainers.
  • Overseas Employment and Sustainable Livelihoods.
  • Leveraging Public Infrastructure.

Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY)

• It is the flagship scheme of MSDE implemented by the National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC).
• The objective of this Skill Certification Scheme is to enable a large number of Indian youth to take up industry-relevant skill training that will help them in securing a better livelihood. 

• Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana 4.0: As a part of Union Budget 2023-24, Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana 4.0 was announced to skill lakhs of youth within the next three years. 
  • The scheme will emphasize on-job training, industry partnership, and alignment of courses with the needs of the industry.
  • The scheme will also cover new-age courses for Industry 4.0, like coding, AI, robotics, mechatronics, IOT, 3D printing, drones, and soft skills.

Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Kendra (PMKK)

• MSDE has initiated the establishment of state-of-the-art aspirational model training centers in every district of India, ensuring coverage of all the parliamentary constituencies. These model training centers are referred to as “Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Kendra” (PMKK).
• It is an initiative towards the creation of standardized infrastructure for the delivery of skill development training which is equipped to run industry-driven courses of high quality.
• PMKK envisions transforming the short-term training ecosystem from a mandate-driven delivery model to a sustainable institutional model.
• It provides financial support in the form of a soft loan of up to INR 70 lakhs to create training infrastructure and complements the delivery of the Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY).

Jan Shikshan Sansthan (JSS)

• Jan Shikshan Sansthans (JSS) are autonomous institutions established by the Government of India to provide vocational training and skill development
• JSS is implemented through a network of NGOs in the country in a phased manner. 
• The objectives of the scheme are:
  • To improve the occupational skills and technical knowledge of the non/neo literates and persons having a rudimentary level of education.
  • To collaborate and coordinate with other departments and agencies working in the field of skill development.

National Apprenticeship Promotion Scheme (NAPS)

• National Apprenticeship Promotion Scheme (NAPS) is a scheme to provide financial support to establishments undertaking apprenticeship training. It was launched in 2016.
• The objectives of the scheme are: 
  • To promote apprenticeship training in the country.
  • To provide financial support to establishments, especially MSMEs, to undertake apprenticeship programs. 
• Financial support: 25% of the prescribed stipend subject to a maximum of Rs. 1500/- per month per apprentice is reimbursed to such establishments by the Government of India to engage apprentices.
• Under the Union Budget 2023-24, the roll-out of the Direct Benefit Transfer under a National Apprenticeship Promotion Scheme to provide stipend support to 47 lakh youth in three years was announced. 

SANKALP

• Skill Acquisition and Knowledge Awareness for Livelihood Promotion (“SANKALP”) is a programme of the Ministry of Skill Development with loan assistance from the World Bank. 
• It aims to improve short-term skill training qualitatively and quantitatively through strengthening institutions, bringing in better market connectivity and inclusion of marginalized sections of society.
• It has three key result areas:
  • Institutional Strengthening at the Central, State, and District level.
  • Quality Assurance of skill development programmes.
  • Inclusion of marginalized populations in skill development programmes.
• The outcomes of the project are measured through the Results Framework and Disbursement Linked Indicators (DLIs) agreed upon between MSDE and World Bank.

Skill Loan Scheme

• The Skill Loan Scheme was launched to provide institutional credit to individuals for Skill Development courses aligned to National Occupations Standards and leading to a certificate/diploma/degree by training institutes as per National Skill Qualification Framework (NSQF).
• This scheme is applicable to all member banks of the Indian Banks’ Association (IBA) and any other banks and financial institutions as may be advised by the RBI. 
• The scheme does not allow for collateral to be charged from the beneficiary.

Deen Dayal Upadhyaya – Grameen Kaushal Yojana (DDU-GKY)

• DDU-GKY is a part of the National Rural Livelihood Mission (NRLM), tasked with the dual objectives of adding diversity to the incomes of rural poor families and cater to the career aspirations of rural youth.
• It aims to skill rural youth who are poor and provide them with jobs having regular monthly wages or above the minimum wages.
• It follows a 3-tier implementation model and is a State-led scheme being implemented in PPP mode, based on a market demand-driven target sanction process.

Creation of Indian Skill Development Services (ISDS)

• This service has been specially created for the Training Directorate of the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) and is a Group ‘A’ service.
• The induction of young talent as ISDS officers is one of the special initiatives taken by the MSDE to attract young and talented administrators towards institutionalizing the Skill Development environment in the country.

 

What are the outcomes of the various government initiatives towards Skill Development? 

• JSS: 77.05% of the beneficiary trainees have undergone occupational shifts in the year 2021-22. The total number of beneficiaries for the year 2021-22 is 4,61,996.
• PMKVY 3.0: As per reported figures in 2022, 7.36 lakh candidates have been trained/oriented under the Scheme in line with the overall target, out of which 1.20 lakh candidates have been trained in Customized Crash Course for Covid Warriors program.
• Skill Hubs: In 2022, 2.28 lakhs students enrolled in 1957 Skill Hubs, spread across government schools, universities, colleges, Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya, ITIs, CBSE schools, and Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Kendras.
• Under the Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) scheme, a total of 8,292 candidates registered on the online portal for the session 2022-23. 

 

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