Professional, Technical, and Skill-Based education

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In this blog post, we have covered the following topics based on the latest UGC NET Syllabus for Paper 1.

Overview of the skill development ecosystem in India encompassing the broad policy
The structural framework that governs the skill development activities in the country
Challenges related to skill development in India

Skill development is a key feature in every individual’s life if he/she wants to be employed. Every country needs individuals with higher levels of skills and educational qualifications. We can’t say that people with good educational qualifications will surely get employment or skilled person will definitely get a job. An individual who wants to get employed will have two possess both the things together i.e. good education and a higher level of skills.

What employers are looking for are individuals who have the ability to communicate, solve problems, and teamwork.

The skill development ecosystem in India is complex, large, and diverse, providing varying levels of skills across an extremely heterogeneous population. Skill development in India can be broadly segmented into Education and Vocational Training.

Skill development in India

Elementary, secondary, and higher education is governed by the Ministry of Human Resource Development. University and Higher Education cater to all college education (Arts, Science, Commerce, etc.), while engineering education, polytechnics, etc. fall under Technical Education.

University Grants Commission (UGC) is the nodal body governing funds, grants, and setting standards for teaching, examination, and research in Universities, and the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) is the regulatory body for Technical Education in India.

At the central level, the nodal institution for vocational training is the Director General of Employment & Training (DGET) under the Ministry of Labor and Employment.

The DGET is responsible for formulating policies, establishing standards, granting affiliation, trade testing and certification, and matters connected to vocational training and providing employment services.

The National Skill Development Council (NSDC) – now a part of the newly created Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship – was initially set up under the Ministry of Finance to provide viability gap funding and promote private skill initiatives.

history of skill development

The government has to put massive effort to form a better educational structure, especially for the skill development sector comprising industry-oriented training. A number of special initiatives are rolled out by Government.

POLICY FRAMEWORK

The government has listed skill development as one of its priorities and aims to enhance participation of youth, seek greater inclusion of women, disabled, and other disadvantaged sections into the workforce, and improve the capability of the present system, making it flexible to adapt to technological changes and demands emanating from the labor market.

The policy framework governing the skill development ecosystem in India includes the Apprentices Act, 1961, the National Skill Policy, and the National Skills Qualification Framework (NSQF).

The Apprenticeship Act of 1961

Apprenticeship programs in India are governed by The Apprentice Act of 1961 and the Apprenticeship Rules of 1992.
The Apprentice Training Scheme is implemented by the ministries of Labour and Employment and Human Resource Development.
The Ministry of Labour and Employment oversees ‘trade apprentices’ through six regional offices. The Ministry of Human Resource Development oversees ‘graduate, technician, and technician (vocational) apprentices’ through four boards located in different cities.
One of the objectives of apprenticeship was also to ensure that employers get a skilled workforce having adequate exposure to real work environments.
The Apprentice Protsahan Yojana was also launched to support MSMEs in the manufacturing sector in engaging apprentices. As per the amended Act, the work hours and leave benefits of Apprentices will be at par with the regular workers from the organized sector.

National Skill Policy

The National Policy on Skill Development was first formulated in 2009 to create a skills ecosystem in India. It acts as a guide to formulate strategies by addressing the different challenges in skill development.

The policy aims to provide an umbrella framework for all skill-related activities carried out within the country, to align them to common standards, and link skill activities with demand centers.

The new skills policy also provides details on how skill development efforts across the country can be aligned within the existing institutional arrangements.

The National Skills Qualification Framework

The National Skills Qualifications Framework (NSQF), notified on 27th December 2013, is a competency-based framework that organizes all qualifications according to a series of levels of knowledge, skills, and aptitude.

Presently, more than 100 countries have, or are in the process of developing national qualification frameworks. Under NSQF, the learner can acquire the certification for competency needed at any level through formal, non-formal, or informal learning.

The NSQF is anchored at the National Skill Development Agency (NSDA) and is being implemented through the National Skills Qualifications Committee (NSQC) which comprises all key stakeholders.

The NSQF provides for a five-year implementation schedule and at the end of the fifth year (2018), it shall be mandatory for all training/educational programs/courses to be NSQF compliant, and all training and educational institutions shall define eligibility criteria for admission to various courses in terms of NSQF levels.

Nodal bodies for Skill Development in India

Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship

The creation of the first-ever separate Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship was announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in June 2014.
It is conceived to encompass all other ministries to work in a unified way, set common standards, as well as coordinate and streamline the functioning of different organizations working for skill development.

MHRD

The Ministry of Human Resource and Development (MHRD) governs the polytechnic institutions offering diploma-level courses in various disciplines such as engineering and technology, pharmacy, architecture, applied arts and crafts, and hotel management.
MHRD is also involved in the scheme of Apprenticeship Training.
Apart from this, MHRD has also introduced vocational education from class IX onwards and provides financial assistance for engaging with industry/SSCs for assessment, certification, and training.

Central Ministries

There are 21 Ministries under the central government that is also working for the purpose of skill development.
There are two approaches that these Ministries have: one approach is setting up training centers of their own for specific sectors (adopted by the Ministry of Labour & Employment, Ministry of Agriculture, Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, etc.). The second approach is in the form of Public Private Partnership (as adopted by the Ministry of Rural Development, Ministry of Women and Child Development, etc.).

NSDC

The National Skill Development Corporation India (NSDC) is a public-private partnership organization (now under the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship) that was incorporated in 2009 under the National Skill Policy.

The main objectives of the NSDC are to:

Upgrade skills to international standards through significant industry involvement and develop necessary frameworks for standards, curriculum, and quality assurance
Enhance, support, and coordinate private sector initiatives for skill development through appropriate Public-Private Partnership (PPP) models; strive for significant operational and financial involvement from the private sector
Play the role of a “market-maker” by bringing financing, particularly in sectors where market mechanisms are ineffective or missing
Prioritize initiatives that can have a multiplier or catalytic effect as opposed to a one-off impact.

Sector Skill Councils

The National Skill Development Policy of 2009 mandated the NSDC to set up SSCs to bring together key stakeholders i.e. industry, workforce, and academia. As of date, 29 SSCs are operational and 4 more SSCs have been approved by NSDC.
They are funded by NSDC for the initial few years and are expected to become financially self-sustaining as they grow

NCVT, SCVT, and Quality Council of India

Established under the Ministry of Labor and Employment with a view to ensure and maintain uniformity in the standards of training all over the country, the National Council for Vocational Training (NCVT) was set up in 1956.

This certifying body conducts All India Trade Tests for those who complete training in ITIs and awards National Trade Certificates to successful candidates.
The Council has representation from central and state government departments, employers’ and workers’ organizations, professional and learned bodies, All India Council for Technical Education, scheduled castes and scheduled tribes, and All India Women’s Organization, among others.
The State Council for Vocational Training (SCVT) at the state levels and the sub-committees have been established to assist the National Council. The Quality Council of India (QCI) was set up jointly by the Government of India and the Indian industry as an autonomous body to establish a national accreditation structure in the field of education, healthcare, environment protection, governance, social sectors, infrastructure, vocational training and other areas that have a significant bearing in improving the quality of life.
All institutions (Government and private ITIs) seeking formal affiliation from NCVT have to first get accreditation from the Quality Council of India

Industrial Training Institutes

The DGET which governs Industrial Training Institutions (ITIs) has recently been aligned with the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship. There are more than 10,000 ITIs with a capacity of approximately 1.5 million seats.
The DGET also governs RVTIs (Regional Vocational Training Institutions) and ATIs (Advance Training Institutions) focusing on specialized and high-end skill sets and trainers courses.
Three major skill development schemes of the DGET that are being implemented through government ITIs and private ITCs include the Craftsmen Training Scheme, the Apprenticeship Training Scheme, and the Modular Employability Scheme.

Alongside the daunting challenge of skilling millions of youth entering the workforce each month, India also faces a huge challenge of evolving a skill development system that can equip the workforce adequately to meet the requirements of the industry.

The workforce needs to be trained across four levels, from the high-end specialized skills for ‘White Collar’ jobs to the low-level skills of the ‘Rust Collar’ jobs. Moreover, these skills have to be adequately linked to the available job opportunities. Several factors have inhibited the skill development eco-system in India to scale up to the desired levels.

The skill development system in India is plagued with multiple issues related to awareness, perception, cost, quality, and scale.

Also, refer- Important Higher Education Body in India | Short Notes

Technical and Skill Based education

Professional, Technical and Skill Based education