Saturday 9 May 2015

“WHY IS INDIA WAY BEHIND IN DEVELOPING SKILLED MANPOWER? ISSUES TO BE ADDRESSED”

WHY IS INDIA WAY BEHIND IN DEVELOPING SKILLED MANPOWER? ISSUES TO BE ADDRESSED

I would like to express my viewpoint on the issue of developing highly skilled 22 million workforce by 2022. I have been actively associated with the academic system and industries all along my professional career. As Vice Chancellor (Director) of Sant Longowal Institute of Engineering and Technology (Deemed University under MHRD), I got an opportunity to study and observe very closely the reasons for this Institute not taking off as it was envisaged despite massive investments and facilities to the students. As a matter of fact most of ITIs have also not been able to serve the purpose. I would like to express my viewpoint on the crisis the country is facing in terms of skilled manpower and why the NCVT, Directorate General of Employment & Training, Ministry of Labour, Government of India and National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) is not able to translate sincere policies and vision of the GOI into reality, as under:

ISSUES
  1. Quality and content of course.
  2. Hardly any ‘Brain Storming’ during training in ITIs.
  3. Quality and commitment of the Teachers / Instructors entrusted with the task.
  4. The commitment / seriousness with which students / society takes / treats this scheme.
  5. Future prospects in terms of career growth and buying power.
  6. Place and respect in the society.
FACTUAL POSITION
  1. On paper and in black & white it’s fine but in reality the concept has been branded as only for those who fail to move up comfortably in a conventional schooling or those who fail to cope up with it (academically weak students).
  2. The scheme hasn’t been able to attract the attention of the so called academically good students and those parents who are enjoying a status in the society.
  3. It is treated something as the only and the last option for the failed and misfit students.
  4. Academically good students and students belonging to the status families don’t get attracted to this trade just because they and their parents fully know in advance that it will be difficult for the child to enjoy the reasonable social status and it will also be almost impossible to get a good decent match.
Net result is students with poor academic track record and disobedient nature end up joining CERTIFICATE PROGRAMMES (ITIs).

CHALLENGE
All-out effort must be made by the GOI to make this concept as one of the most attractive option for students / parents just after Class-X. Thus in return getting a highly skilled manpower may be more than the target of 22 million. This will be the beginning of golden era for India and it will start moving on the highway of industrial development and prosperity.

The real challenge is to make all efforts to be able to attract all those main stream students (Human Resource) who have a KNACK for the skilled jobs or profession but shy away because of:
  1. Very low salary structure it offers.
  2. This profession is looked upon by the society.
  3. This route also brings to a dead end of further career progression.
IMMEDIATE ACTION REQUIRED
  1. Introduce seamless multi entry – multi exit flexible system for Technical Education after Class-X as has been introduced in SLIET from 2014-15 session (Annexure-I).
  2. Most serious teacher / instructor quality evaluation procedures must be introduced immediately. Freedom to hire & fire must be given to the VC / Director / Principal.
  3. Ensure / guarantee respectable wages / financial returns for all those who opt to work as skilled workers. One should be able to compare the status / buying power of similarly placed workers in the West World. 
  4. Large disparity between wages of white collared workforce and blue collared workforce must be narrowed down.
  5. Social segregation must be eliminated.

EXPECTED OUTCOME
Highly skilled & decently educated workforce of 22 million people or may be more by 2022

ABOUT
Seamless Multi Entry – Multi Exit Flexible System for Technical Education

Seamless multi entry – multi exit flexible system for Technical Education that has been introduced in SLIET after Class-X from 2014-15 academic session. The greatest advantage of this system is that it allows seamless movement from Conventional courses to Skill development based courses to Conventional courses.


An age limit criterion has also been done away with for allowing seamless migration between job and academics at any stage of life.

The Institute was established by Ministry of Human Resource and Development (MHRD), Government of India, with a vision to act as a nodal centre for developing human resource for catering to the needs of Industries (skilled workers, supervisors, engineers and managers), Universities (teaching and research), R&D establishments, and motivating them to serve the Nation by becoming Bureaucrats, Entrepreneurs, Social activists, and Politicians. 

Further, SLIET has implemented MHRD sponsored scheme for Integrating Persons with Disabilities in the Mainstream of Vocational & Technical Education under which students with disabilities are admitted in Formal (Certificate and Diploma) and non-formal programmes since 2001. 

The institute is an autonomous Centrally Funded Technical Institute (CFTI), fully funded by Government of India. The institute is running programmes for awarding Certificates, Diplomas, Undergraduate degrees, Postgraduate degrees (science, engineering and business administration) and Doctoral degrees. All the programmes are approved by AICTE. The Institute enjoys the status of deemed university under UGC act of 1956 (Section-3). 

Thus SLIET with these unique features is a “stand alone” institute in the country. I had joined the institute with a commitment and confidence to make SLIET a Benchmark for other technical institutes in the country. It is committed to provide best possible technical education with moral values for giving good human resource for serving the nation.







1 comment:

  1. society will never treat Diploma holders at par with graduates. Other good Institutes except SLIET are not so flexible for vocational certificate or diploma holders. Even IITs & NITs do not have lateral entry scheme. Students coming from main stream entrance like JEE are not interested to sit with diploma holders in the same class.

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