‘Aiming to touch 50 million training figure’
In your presentation you maintained that you have exceeded the actual training target you had set. Please elaborate.
We had earlier set the target of training 25 million personnel by 2025. But we have reached 40 million.
And now you are targeting to become the largest skill development agency in the world. What is the kind of training volume you intend to cover by the end of this decade?
We do close to half a million training every year. And we are all set to scale that up to one million annually. As I mentioned, we have trained about 40 million personnel so far and in the medium run, we would like to touch the 50 million mark.
In the immediate run, how have you planned to expand your wings?
We have plans to set up 50 new Future Skills Centres and 10 NSDC International Academies to advance skill development and training programmes. The number of industry-aligned programs will increase beyond 300, covering 12 major emerging technologies. The goal is to train over 2 lakh candidates and establish over 2.70 lakh sq ft of training infrastructure, further strengthening employability and workforce readiness.
Your own figure says that of the number of people whom you have trained, about 25 per cent of them have got gainful employment. Do you have any plans or new strategy to improve this ratio?
This number is only for those who come to the NSDC to get employment. There is a large workforce which join as they need to develop skillsets in emerging domains like AI, renewal energy or other new technologies. They are not actually looking for a job, rather they are looking to be better placed in their career. So, from a jobs’ platform, we are fast becoming a career platform. All our recent initiatives are meant to evolve or to transform from a job platform to a career platform. And that’s where we will start measuring ourselves – are we adding value to your career or not?
You have been in the news in recent times for your international collaborations. What is happening there?
There are two-three ways in which international collaborations are taking shape. Firstly, there is digital platform. There is a whole range of programs on our digital platform and let me tell you, every country in the world is showing interest. The world has already started reaching out to us as we are developing language translation capability. Secondly. many countries in the world want to establish NSDC kind of agency on their own. There are at least 10 countries which are talking with us now. The third intervention is: many countries in the world want to learn India’s experience in transforming skill and education involving private sector. We are working with International Labour Organization (ILO) which is an association of 187 countries. We are conducting a lot of master classes for them. Last but not the least, the world needs Indians. And we are working with employers and the governments in other parts of the world to provide job opportunities to our youth.
So you are telling me that internationalization is your major emphasis now?
Yes. Some of the very best names in the academic world globally are doing case studies on us. You will see some of these case studies coming out very soon. And there is a lot the world can gain from what we have done here.
In a broader sense, how would you explain your association with the private sector? They have such a critical role to play in the entire training and employability value chain.
Our engagements are very intense. India incorporated is aware of the fact that only thing that could hinder our future growth is not having the right talent in our workforce. And that’s where the conversation with the private sector is shaping well. I believe that until now the skill ecosystem has been trying to get people work-ready. Whereas the new engagement has to start to work with the private sector. But now the core challenge is: how do you upskill your workforce and prepare them to become more competitive. This is the new area where we are seeking to engage with the private sector.