BackSkills mission plans bigger role for district administrations
The ministry of skills development and entrepreneurship has written to district administrations to get ready for a bigger role in making the skills mission more effective and drive better outcomes by serving the bottom of the pyramid
PremiumIndia’s skills mission is set to shift from a top-down to a bottom-up approach, with district administrations getting more responsibilities, including the power to assess demand for jobs linked to training programmes for the youth.
The ministry of skills development and entrepreneurship (MSDE) has written to district administrations to get ready for a bigger role in making the skills mission more effective and drive better outcomes by serving the bottom of the pyramid.
“Among many reforms proposed…district level planning and execution has been made the fundamental instrument of implementation process," said the skills ministry in a letter to district collectors.
“For better execution, district and block level involvement in the skills mission is a requirement. You cannot do everything from Delhi and the move is well thought through," Praveen Kumar, secretary, MSDE, said.
Kumar said he has already held meetings with top officials of state governments, and states are now working at the district and block levels. “It’s a collaborative effort. We as a ministry don’t create jobs but we can skill train based on demand. This year onwards, the focus is on a demand-driven approach in the skill development space," Kumar said.
According to the ministry communication, local authorities will play a role in skill gap and demand assessment, and mobilization of candidates and counselling, besides offering post-training support through placements and apprenticeships and help the Union government and National Skill Development Corp. (NSDC) to monitor the training quality.
Kumar said if a district has a textile or automotive industry, it will be better equipped to handle skill training for the sector. “Job roles, mobilization, placement linkage, etc., can be done by local administrations. The need to connect local youth with local jobs as well as training and tracking can best be done at the local level," he added.
Kumar said while the local youth may not be able to fulfil all the demands of big industrial clusters, such as the textile clusters in Tiruppur and Surat, job classifications and local requirement will drive others to chip in.
According to officials in the skills ministry, the third phase of the Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana is likely to be launched within a month, following the delay due to the covid-19 outbreak. “Before making a formal announcement, we are making sure the groundwork is ready and training can happen as soon as the announcement happens by December or early-January," said Kumar.
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