National Training Conclave

Recently, the Prime Minister inaugurated the first-ever ‘National Training Conclave’ at the International Exhibition and Convention Centre, Pragati Maidan in New Delhi,

• As part of a vision for capacity development, the National Programme for Civil Services Capacity Building (NPCSCB) – 'Mission Karmayogi' – was launched also launched to build the right attitude, skills and knowledge.
• This conclave is yet another step in similar direction.
• The event is being hosted by the Capacity Building Commission with an objective to foster collaboration among civil services training institutes and strengthen the training infrastructure for civil servants across the country.
• The conclave is going to witness the participation of more than 1500 representatives from various training institutes, including Central Training Institutes, State Administrative Training Institutes, Regional and Zonal Training Institutes, and Research institutes.
• The attendees will comprise civil servants from central government departments, state governments, and local governments, along with experts from the private sector.
• Aim:
  • It aims to facilitate the exchange of ideas, identify challenges being faced , explore opportunities, and generate actionable solutions and comprehensive strategies for effective capacity building, stated the official release
• Topics of discussion will include faculty development, training impact assessment, content digitisation, and other significant areas that contribute to the enhancement of civil services training.

Status of Skill Development in India:

• The 2015 Report on National Policy on Skill Development and Entrepreneurshipestimated that only 7% of the total workforce in India had undergone formal skill training compared with 52% in the US, 80% in Japan, and 96% in South Korea.
• A skill gap study conducted by theNational Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) over 2010-2014 indicated an additional net incremental requirement of 10.97 crores of skilled manpower in 24 key sectors by 2022.

• • In addition, the 29.82 crore farms and non-farm sector workforce needed to be skilled, reskilled, and upskilled.

Why is there a Need for Skill Development of Workforce?

• Supply and Demand Issues:On the supply side, India is failing to create enough job opportunities; and on the demand side, professionals entering the job market are lacking in skill sets. This is resulting in a scenario of rising unemployment rates along with low employability.
• Rising Unemployment: As per the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE), the unemployment rate in India has been around 7% or 8% in 2022,up from about 5% five years ago.
• Lack of Skills in Workforce:While keeping pace with the employment generation is one issue, the employability and productivity of those entering the labour market is another issue.
• Demand for Skilled Workforce:The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) had projected Incremental Human Resource Requirements till 2022 at 201 million, making the total requirement of the skilled workforce by 2023 at 300 million.
  • A major share of these jobs was to be added in the manufacturing sector, with the National Manufacturing Policy (2011) targeting 100 million new jobs in manufacturing by 2022.

Government Initiatives:

• Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana:
  • The flagship Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY) scheme was launched in 2015 to provide short-term training, skilling through ITIs and under the apprenticeship scheme.
  • Since 2015, the government has trained over 10 million youth under this scheme.
• SANKALP and STRIVE: The SANKALP programme which focuses on the district-level skilling ecosystem and the STRIVE project which aims to improve the performance of ITIs are other significant skilling interventions.