Skill India: Empowering Young Adults With Technical Expertise

"Simhavatsarvavegena patantyarthe kilartinah"

Those who intend to get work done, cast themselves on the task with all possible speed, like a lion. Speed and efficiency are the keys to excel. But not everyone can get a level playing field as upskilling is not something that everyone can afford.

This is not the power of manifestation but the strength that lies in unleashing one's true potential. Knowledge and skills are the true sets of values that set apart two potential candidates necessary for their success and growth. In a country with 141.7 crore population, ensuring that every potential individual aspiring to attain skill gets equal opportunity is important.

To provide vocational training and skill development to the Indian workforce, the government started the Skill India development program in 2015. The program is concentrated on developing a trained workforce that can satisfy the demands of diverse businesses and contribute to India's economic development.

The Ministry is in charge of organizing all national skill development initiatives, closing the gap between the demand and supply for skilled labor, developing the framework for technical and vocational education, upgrading existing skills, developing new ones, and fostering creative problem-solving not only for jobs that already exist but also for jobs that will be created. The country with the highest population should leverage its demographic dividend. Now is the right time to realize the vision through the "Skill India mission".

All Indian nationals who are older than 15 and have a willingness to learn new skills are eligible to participate in the Skill India program. The program is designed to offer training to people who are working and jobless, as well as to people who want to improve their current skill set.

The mission established the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship to control training Programs and projects. To meet the requirements, several central and state ministries, along with MSDE, are currently offering courses in vocational education and training.

To target the sizable rural population that has either been unreached or is far away, the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship has launched several initiatives. Today, this initiative has seen a massive spike in enrolment due to increased career stability and risk.

?It emphasizes providing training, guidance, and financial support to various trades like blacksmiths, transport, tourism, fashion designers, leather crafters, carpenters, nurses, tailors, and handloom artisans.

? The training will make an effort to meet requirements for other nations as well. UK, US, Israel, Germany, France, and other nations have joined as partners with Skill India. This has broadened the reach of the scheme, thus increasing job opportunities.

?? The development of the workforce is prioritized to meet global industrialized nations' demands.

Oracle Academy promised to start a project to train more than 500,000 students annually to build computer science abilities by increasing its partnerships to 2,700 institutions in India during inception.

Internationally again, India and Japan have signed a memorandum of understanding on semiconductors. It emphasizes on skilling and talents of young adults in the field of emerging technologies. CSIR- Institute of Microbial Technology has collaborated with Merck to establish a world-class skill development center to support India's initiative.

The government of India had allocated 17,000 crores, the highest ever allocation to this sector, in the budget for the fiscal year 2017–18 to support the Skill India Mission. Which is now at Rs. 3517.3 crore in 2023-34 as compared to that of 2022-23 which was at Rs.2999 crore At least ten million Indian youth join the labour field each year, but the country's employment growth has not been able to keep up with this surge, making rising unemployment a serious issue. The government hopes that this funding will help the millions of young Indians who enter the workforce each year by creating jobs and sustaining their livelihoods. As per NSDC reports, a total of 1.42 crore individuals had registered while 1.37 crore youths were successfully trained as of February 6th, 2023.

Another significant project under the Skill India Mission, SANKALP (Skill Acquisition and Knowledge Awareness for Livelihood Promotion Programme), has received funding from the government totaling $250 million along with the assistance of the World Bank. 350 million young Indians are to receive training that is relevant to the market through this. In addition, the government will establish 100 India International Skills Centres to provide advanced language training for young people preparing for jobs abroad. Young India has ample opportunities to accomplish.

According to CSO, rural women make up 59.30% of the self-employed workforce, while males make up 54.50%. This demonstrates that the government has taken steps to empower rural women. 48.30 lakhs of women had received skill training in the third phase of the Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana. Hoping to increase participation in the upcoming phases.

Skill India as a mission is a noble initiative. Mainly because the growing working-class population in the nation is not useful if it's not put to use effectively and efficiently. The growing unemployment rate is a cause of concern. But tackling this problem by empowering youth along with collaborating with corporations, countries, and international organizations will promise a better future. We should look forward to ensuring that.

Learning is a gift. A gift with an added advantage is Skill India's mission.