5-Feb-2021: Integrated Skill Development Scheme

Government is implementing various policy initiatives and schemes for supporting the development of textile sector. These schemes and initiatives which promote technology upgradation, creation of infrastructure, skill development and sectoral development in the textile sector, create a conducive environment and provide enabling conditions for textile manufacturing in the country and helps in boosting textile sector through its various schemes, such as the Amended Technology Upgradation Fund Scheme (A-TUFS), Schemes for the development of the Powerloom Sector(Power-Tex), Schemes for Technical Textiles, Scheme for Integrated Textile Parks (SITP), Scheme for Additional Grant for Apparel Manufacturing Units under SITP (SAGAM), Jute (ICARE- Improved Cultivation and Advanced Retting Exercise), Integrated Processing Development Scheme (IPDS), Silk Samagra, National Handloom Development Programme, National Handicraft Development Programme, Integrated Wool Development Programme (IWDP), North East Region Textiles Promotion Scheme (NERTPS), Rebate of State and Central Taxes and Levies (ROSCTL), Scheme for Production and Employment Linked Support for Garmenting Units (SPELSGU) etc. The above schemes are implemented on Pan-India basis.

Sector wise details of the training target allocated to various implementing partners (Handicrafts, Handloom, Jute, Sericulture, Technical Textiles) empanelled under the ongoing Skill Development Scheme (SAMARTH) comprising state government agencies, sectoral organizations of Ministry of Textiles and Textile Industry/ industry associations for imparting skilling based on the proposals and further verification of training centres is given in Annexure- I.

ANNEXURE-I

Sector- wise details of training target allocated to Implementing Partners(IPs) under Samarth

Segment*

No. of agencies submitted proposals and have been empanelled

Training target allocated after Physical Verification

Handloom

9

39871

Handicrafts

13

27628

Sericulture

1

1360

Jute

4

12320

Technical Textiles

A total of 9 proposals have been received against the RFP floated for empanelment of Implementing Partners for undertaking training programme in the Technical Textiles Sector.

 

* In addition to the above, 89 number of agencies have been empanelled in other textile segments with a training target of 2,49,200. The training is spread all over India with the help of State Government agencies, industry partners, Industry Associations and MSME Associations.

15-Oct-2020: Leather Sector Skill Council launches SCALE India Android App for Enhanced Quality Assurance under Skill India Mission

In an endeavour to provide a single platform to integrate quality assurance across all its services, the Leather Sector Skill Council (LSSC) today announced the launch of Skill Certification Assessment for Leather Employees (SCALE) India android app. Operating under the aegis of the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship(MSDE), LSSC is committed to strengthen its digital capabilities on quality assurance across training delivery, monitoring, assessments, verification and linkages to ASEEM portal. Synonymous with assessments, the cornerstone of quality assurance and the one of the main functions of LSSC, this unique initiative aims to provide a one-stop solution for the skilling, learning, assessment and employment needs of the leather and leather products industry.

The android app was launched by Dr. Mahendra Nath Pandey, Union Minister of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship at a virtual event that witnessed participation of Mr. P R Aqeel Ahmed, Chairman, LSSC and Mr. Rajesh Rathnam, CEO, LSSC. The platform caters to the need of all the stakeholders of the skilling and employment ecosystem namely – candidate/trainee, employer, employee, assessor and trainer - all at one place. The services are accessible through the web and android application that virtually works on any smart handheld device, desktop/laptop, smartphones, tablets or phablets. Apart from providing end to end quality assurance across training, assessment, and certification services, the app will also help employers engage with other stakeholders seamlessly and provide a marketplace for human capital for the leather industry.

Commenting on the initiative, Dr. MahendraNathPandey said, “The launch of SCALE India platform by LSSC will boost our relentless efforts to strengthen the leather skilling ecosystem and help us inch closer to fulfill our Hon’ble Prime Minister’s vision of making an ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’ the ‘Skill Capital of the World’. By leveraging technology to bring in efficient and intelligent tools to drive demand-driven and future-relevant skilling programs, this platform will ensure seamless convergence and coordination across various schemes and programs as a single point interface. It will play a crucial role in providing quality assured services to all stakeholders by aggregating demand and connecting supply to demand, all through one platform.”

SCALE will help candidates in the skilling ecosystem to get assessed and certified on their knowledge, skills and behaviour on a specific qualification pack. It also enables access to micro-learning modules for bridging the skill gaps that are identified and can be re-assessed and certified at the end of the learning on the specific qualification pack. It further assists the candidate to become a productive resource who is readily employable in the industry. The candidates can search for employment opportunities and connect with employers post completion of their certification. The assessments are currently available in English, Hindi, Tamil, and Bengali, with plans to add more regional languages in a phased manner.

From an employer standpoint, the platform will serve as a job portal with access to a certified talent pool of candidates to hire from, leading to increase in productivity and profitability. Employers also get to share their skill gap requirements and check for suitable training modules available to bridge the skill gap of their workforce and raise training requests for short term/customised training that would be serviced by the LSSC. The employment demand aggregation works through the integration of the ASEEM portal with the SCALE platform. Facility to raise requests for trained resources and Apprenticeship implementation based on NAPS has also been provided to promote adoption of NAPS by the employers. Further, requests for implementing RPL at the employer establishments can also be raised through the SCALE platform.

Employees across the leather and leather products industry can also register themselves to explore e-learning content for upskilling and get certified post learning, leading to improvement in productivity, better perks, and upward career movement. The SCALE platform assists employees to upgrade their skills basis changing market dynamics and evolving industry demands and get certified on the new skills acquired, with the facility to create a certification stack that acts as a key element of their curriculum vitae. For assessors, the platform provides centralised access to batches tagged to a qualification pack for conducting assessments on the scheduled date as the results are available instantaneously to the assessor and real time data of the candidates assessed are available to the LSSC as the assessing and certifying body.

The platform will also help trainers get complete access to all the learning and training resources required for effective delivery of standardised training for batches on schedule. The resources such as presentations, video clips, quizzes, classroom activities, on the job training exercises and activities are made available to the trainer as per the training session plan. This assists trainers by ensuring uniformity in learning and adherence to quality norms. The platform facilitates capturing attendance of the trainees, progress of training, feedback and other documentation required for compliance. This enables the trainer to manage time effectively and focus on the core job of training candidates to become skilled and employable resources.

About Leather Sector Skill Council: The Leather Sector Skill Council (LSSC) is a non-profit organisation dedicated to meet the demand for skilled workforce in the leather industry in India. LSSC was set up in 2012 as one of the key sector skill councils approved by National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC). We cater to the training and employment needs of various sub-sectors in the leather industry such as Finished Leather, Footwear, Garments, Leather Goods, Accessories, Saddlery and Harness sectors. We work with a host of members from the industry, government organizations, the academia, the training partners and the assessment partners. Our partnership with Council for Leather Exports (CLE) brings us closer to the needs of the industry, particularly from the perspective of exports and international industry standards.

24-Jun-2020: MSDE-IBM Partnership Unveils Free Digital Learning Platform “Skills Build Reignite”

Directorate General of Training (DGT), under the aegis of the Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship (MSDE), is responsible for implementing long term institutional training to the nation’s youth through its network of training institutes and infrastructure. It plays a key role in the execution of vocational training schemes and in making ‘Digital India’ dream become a reality.

Recent analyses are an indicator that the rate of digital evolution is outpacing the rate of digital adoption. The young learners now need specialized skill sets to work with the advanced technologies and to make use of the diverse opportunities available under the ‘new-collar jobs’. Hence, creating opportunities for Young India with focus on new-age skills like Artificial Intelligence (AI), Big Data, 3D - Technology, Cloud Computing, Cyber Security, etc. which are aligned to Industry 4.0 requirements, has become the prime focus for DGT.

With this in view, DGT has in the past one year, collaborated with many digital industry front-liners like IBM India Pvt. Ltd., Microsoft Corp. (India) Ltd., SAP India, Cisco Systems India Pvt. Ltd., Accenture Solutions and Quest Alliance, Adobe India, etc.,  to enable the students to become industry-ready. Even in the current scenario of the continuous impact of COVID-19, DGT is lining up with the industry partners in its efforts for enabling blended /e-learning with a combination of multimedia and similar digital resources for the students/ trainees, trainers and the administrators, by providing anytime, anywhere online digital content through its BharatSkills learning platform (https://bharatskills.gov.in).

One such strong and growing partnership has been between DGT and IBM India with some unique and first of a kind program. IBM has committed to provide multifaceted digital skill training in the area of Cloud Computing and Artificial Intelligence (AI) to students & trainers across the nation in the National Skill Training Institutes (NSTIs) and Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs).

The Skills Build Reignite tends to provide job seekers and entrepreneurs, with access to free online coursework and mentoring support designed to help them reinvent their careers and businesses. Job seekers, individual business owners, entrepreneurs and any individual with learning aspirations can now tap into host of industry relevant content on topics including Artificial intelligence, Cloud, Data analytics and security to reskill and upskill themselves, at no cost. Its special feature is the personalized coaching for entrepreneurs, seeking advice to help establish or restart their small businesses as they begin to focus on recovery to emerge out of the COVID 19 pandemic. Courses for small business owners include, for example, financial management, business strategy, digital strategy, legal support and more. Plus, IBM volunteers will serve as mentors to some of the 30,000 Skills Build users in 100 communities in at least five major regions worldwide to help reinvigorate local communities.

The Skills Build Innovation camp is a 10 week program which supports 100 hours of structured learning to learners who are interested in gaining hands-on project experience to enhance learning and are intent on building their network and enhance their employability. With the guidance of expert facilitators, IBM volunteers and coaches, the students will be guided through the design thinking process and learn strategic methods to craft their problem statement, ideate creatively, solve complex problems more quickly, design an innovative user experience and tell compelling stories. The Skills Build Innovation Camp concludes with a pitch to facilitators, other teams, stakeholders and potential employers or investors.

Background: In November 2019, IBM India, in partnership with Directorate General of Training (DGT), Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, Government of India, and its implementation partners, made the Skills Build online learning platform available to Indian students through Bharatskills (https://bharatskills.gov.in) of DGT. Digital classrooms on this platform are available to students and instructors from the Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) and technical education ecosystem in India. Within the first 6 weeks of its deployment in India, the platform has already benefited 4700 motivated learners from 15 states and Union Territories who have been able to continue their learning despite lockdowns and restrictions. It currently has impacted 14,135 learners who have completed 40,000 of courses and 77,000 hours of e-learning. Skills Build has been rated as India’s Top 10 online learning platform by National Skills Network. According to the India Skill Report (2019), only 45.6% of the youth graduating from educational institutions are employable. This reflects the massive shortage of skilled workforce in the country.

Congratulating DGT and IBM India for their collaborative efforts to bridge the skills gap in the country through this initiative, Dr. Mahendra Nath Pandey, Union Minister of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship said, “Today, we mark a significant milestone in supporting Centre’s efforts in accelerating Indian economy’s revival from the adverse effects of COVID with the launch of Skills Build Reignite and Innovation Camp, in collaboration with IBM India. In line with our Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s Skill India Mission, the Ministry has been working relentlessly to strengthen the skilling ecosystem and leverage the rise in demand for new-age skills by expanding industry cross-collaboration and creating learning pathways through digital learning platforms. IBM‘s expertise in providing multifaceted digital skill training in the area of Cloud Computing and Artificial Intelligence (AI) will strengthen our efforts in the recovery of local workforces, communities and economies by supporting job seekers, entrepreneurs, and small businesses.”

In appreciation of the commendable role played by IBM India, Shri Praveen Kumar, Secretary, MSDE said that “Our mission is to empower next gen with new age skills and make them future ready.  Our collaboration with IBM will help us address the widening skill gap in the country and create a culture of up-skilling. IBM’s Skills Build Reignite platform provides right set of tools, innovative approach and access to mentors for students to thrive in this competitive environment”.

Ms. Neelam Shami Rao, Director General of Training, MSDE, said that DGT aims to constantly upgrade and modernize the ITI Ecosystem in terms of infrastructure, pedagogy, curriculum and technology interventions for creating vast learning opportunities for the youth of India.

“There is a need to shift the needle and focus on new technologies and changing skill requirement to bridge the skill gap. It’s important that we align the workforce to industry needs and technology shifts. The Skills Build Reignite platform helps equip job seekers with digital, professional skills and relevant training to re-enter the workforce. Not only does this platform provides career reinvention opportunities but also innovative ways of working and individualized support for relaunching business strategies,” said Sandip Patel, General Manager, IBM India/South Asia.

4-Nov-2019: Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship launches Skills Build platform in Collaboration with IBM

Directorate General of Training (DGT), under the aegis of Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship (MSDE), announced the launch of Skills Build platform in collaboration with IBM. As part of the programme, a two-year advanced diploma in IT, networking and cloud computing, co-created and designed by IBM, will be offered at the Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) & National Skill Training Institutes (NSTIs). The platform will be extended to train ITI & NSTI faculty on building skills in Artificial Intelligence (AI). Skills Build offers digital learning content from IBM and partners such as CodeDoor, Coorpacademy and Skillsoft.

The digital platform will provide a personal assessment of the cognitive capabilities and personality via MyInnerGenius to the students. They will then learn foundational knowledge about digital technologies, as well as professional skills such as resume-writing, problem solving and communication. Students will also receive recommendations on role-based education for specific jobs that include technical and professional learning.

Collaboration with MSDE will help the next-gen to compete in the global economy. Skills are the new currency and this program will address industries’ constant struggle for job-ready individuals. The platform will help students develop the technical and professional skills needed for competitive “new collar” jobs. SkillsBuild platform will reinforce IBM’s commitment in enabling life-long learning in India and aligning with Skills India initiative by Government of India.

DGT is committed to digitally revolutionize the vocational training system in India and partner with industry leaders to provide the apt industrial exposure to the youth.

This initiative is part of IBM’s global commitment to create a job-ready workforce and to build the next generation of skills needed for new collar careers. The platform is deployed with the support of leading NGOs like Unnati and Edunet Foundation. IBM Volunteers along with the NGOS will offer students personalised coaching and experiential learning opportunities. IBM joined hands with Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship (MSDE) in early 2018 to launch a first-of-its kind ‘New Collar Curriculum. Post the successful completion of the course, in September 2019, 19 students were offered a five month paid internship at IBM.