The Union Budget 2024-25: Ushering in a New Era for Indian Education and Employment

The Union Budget 2024-25 heralds a promising era for Indian education and employment. I am profoundly optimistic about the strategic impact these initiatives will have on the sector and society at large.

At its core, the government’s ‘Employment & Skilling’ initiative aspires to facilitate employment, skilling, and other opportunities for 4.1 crore youths over the next five years, while revamping 1,000 Industrial Training Institutes to better align academic outcomes with the exigencies of the marketplace. This strategic approach addresses the enduring disjunction between education and practical competencies. From an industry perspective, the goal of these initiatives is to develop a workforce that is more skilled and able to adapt to the demands of a global market.? By prioritising industry-relevant skills and expanding vocational training, the budget acknowledges the necessity of a workforce adept at navigating the rapidly evolving technological and economic milieu. This paradigm shift promises to enhance productivity and spur innovation across various sectors.

As a world-renowned organisation with a futuristic outlook on education and skilling, Cambridge University Press & Assessment has long been committed to helping Indian governments achieve their skilling goals and to strengthen their education systems both at the higher education and school levels. We have been doing our utmost to promote future skills to enhance employability, and to help students develop an entrepreneurial mindset. We commend government initiatives such as the SWAYAM Plus Portal, the Choice Based Credit System (CBCS), the National Skill Development Mission (NSDM), the Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya National Mission and the thought process behind the "One Nation, One Subscription" approach, all enhancing educational quality and research excellence. Cambridge University Press & Assessment, in fact, is one of the first few to partner with the Government of India on the Swayam Plus platform to offer credit-based digital courses on soft skills and employability skills as well as AI enable language proficiency assessments

Furthermore, Cambridge has placed much emphasis on subjects such as climate sustainability, entrepreneurship, IT, and coding. These capabilities are becoming indispensable as industries grapple with new challenges and opportunities in a dynamic global economy. Cambridge University Press & Assessment in India has collaborated with the Management & Entrepreneurship and Professional Skills Council (MEPSC) to develop and publish instructional material for the English, Employability and Entrepreneurship modules. We published titles like Generic Skills for Employability and Plan for Entrepreneurial Activity, both custom-made to match the MEPSC Model Curriculum.

The focus on refining educational resources and training underscores a broader commitment to enhancing employability and equipping students for the complexities of the modern job market. The infusion of practical, real-life scenarios and interdisciplinary learning into educational materials represents a deliberate effort to align with global standards and industry expectations. Under the purview of the National Education Policy 2020, Cambridge University Press & Assessment has been publishing advanced textbooks in mathematics, science, and engineering that encourage multidisciplinary learning and real-world application. Our globally recognized, reliable, and diagnostic assessments enable schools, governments, and ministries in 109 countries to transform data into actionable knowledge, make informed teaching decisions and enhance learner outcomes.

Additionally, we are working to skill nursing students across Karnataka through Occupation English Test Preparation in collaboration with NSDC. Partnerships with universities like KL University, MIT ADT, and BIT Mesra impact thousands of students annually. Engagements with SCOPE Gujarat, Swayam Plus, Tamil Nadu Skill Development Corporation (TNSDC), MEPSC, and even international collaborations in Nepal further extend our reach.

Cambridge’s skills development initiatives are extensive. We have collaborated with National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) and National Stock Exchange Information Technology (NSEIT), with a planned initiative to skill 25,000 engineering students through Center of Excellence (COE) in partnership with leading organisations.

?Additionally, we are working to skill nursing students across Karnataka Occupation English Test Preparation in collaboration with NSDC. Partnerships with universities like KL University, MIT ADT, and BIT Mesra impact thousands of students annually. Engagements with SCOPE Gujarat, Swayam PLUS, Tamil Nadu Skill Development Corporation (TNSDC), MEPSC, and others.

Furthermore, the budget's emphasis on employment generation will fuel the aspirations of countless teachers, who are the backbone of our education sector. We are also collaborating with the Ministry of Education and CBSE to transition India’s education system to a competency-based framework aligned with NEP 2020 and NSDC's skills development goals. Our aim is to train 50,000 teachers across India by 2025 under our teacher development programs. These programs include nearly 2,000 online and face-to-face professional development courses annually, along with various networking events to support educators globally.

The initiatives of Budget 2024-25 are catalysts for significant industrial and societal transformation. They promise to create a skilled and inclusive workforce, propelling India’s position in the global market. As educators, we at Cambridge are excited to support and be part of this journey.

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