With so many years of working closely with the government, industry, global standards organizations, multilateral bodies, policymakers, etc. What would you say has changed in regard to approaching skill development in the country?

While all successive governments had done well to promote Skilling in the country, this government took a lead in many ways to boost the skilling ecosystem in the country. First of all a major decision of creating a separate Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship clearly spelt out the intentions of this government towards skilling. Further creation of Pradhan Mantri Kausahl Kendra (PMKK) also was a big step towards providing skilled manpower in a unified and qualitative way. Opening of the Skill Universities is yet another step towards bringing the subject of skilling to a respectable level. The best part is that the Skill India Mission is amongst the closest dream projects of our Hon’ble Prime Minister Narendra Modi ji and as such, the entire nation is behind him in this quest.

As for your current role as the CEO of the Skills Council, what are some of the programs you are spearheading to drive the skilling narrative of the nation?

Being an industry body, our quest is to ensure that skilled manpower is available in our Apparel industry and on the other hand unemployed youth gets employed or self-employed. As CEO of the Sector Skill Council, our major function is to participate in the flagship scheme of the MSDE, namely Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY) and other government schemes, like DDU GKY, Samarth, Learn and Earn etc. Till now we have participated in PMKVY-1 and PMKVY-2 schemes quite successfully, wherein, we have provided trainings to approx. 12 lac persons across the country and have got more than 6 lac persons employed or self-employed. We are now looking forward to participate in the PMKVY-3 scheme which is likely to be soon implemented.

Other major schemes in which we provide skilling is thru participating in training and assessments under CSR schemes of the Corporates and Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs). In addition to this, we also provide skilling in Schools, Colleges and even in AICTE Engineering colleges. 14-year of education doesn’t guarantee employment, whereas, a 14-week skilling course in Apparel sector guarantees a job. This is the major success of this initiative.

The COVID-19 pandemic altered the skilling landscape in many ways, in terms of demands of skills, approach to skilling & changes to the curriculum. What do you believe is the biggest change that COVID has brought about to the skill ecosystem in India?

The entire world is facing the Covid Pandemic challenge and each and every person in the world has got affected with this Pandemic. The skilling industry also got affected by is, as all offline skilling training had got halted dues to the Social distancing norms and Lockdowns. However, the trainings have slowly restarted and are being held across the country.

However, the major change which has emerged is the switching over to Online mode in skilling. Efforts are now on to convert offline skilling content into on line mode so that due to Social distancing restrictions, more people are covered in the skilling process. This mode, however, has its limitations, as while the theory classes can be arranged online and online demonstration of practical’s can also be organized but to test a trainee on practical aspects only offline mode would have to be resorted to. As such, switching over from offline to blended mode involving mixture of off-line and Online modes is the major development in the skilling ecosystem.

How do you see India playing a crucial role in the global skills and workforce ecosystem in the 2021s and beyond?

As envisaged by the Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi ji to make India as the skill capital of the world, works has already started and is going stronger. A major shift has got developed in the world scenario. While earlier only shop floor workers used to be demanded by the entire world, mainly in Gulf and African countries, now even white collared manpower is in demand and that too is not limited to the above countries but even European and other developed countries have started demanding skilled manpower from India. Japan is the live example, where one lac skilled persons were required and the demand has majorly been met, as well by India.

Another point is that while the whole world is aging, India is getting younger. Accordingly, by 2025 more developed countries would be demanding skilled manpower, in addition to conventional countries. Post-Covid Pandemic, many countries would be averse to having manpower from China. So, India would have more opportunities to send skilled manpower on shop floor, as well as in senior positions.

How are you leveraging partnerships, be it for training, assessing, or knowledge sharing from government to private organizations and even national level councils?

At the moment approximately 5000 Training Partners and 46 Assessment Agencies are affiliated to AMH SSC, which is a huge number. This number includes both Private, as well as Govt Institutions. We give special dispensation to Govt institutions and NGOs by not charging any affiliation fee from them.

We are also partnering with many leading Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs) by arranging Training Programmes out of their CSR funds. This further strengthens the National Skill Initiative of the Govt of India and provides employment and Self-Employment to many unemployed youth. Needless to mention that the apparel industry gets more skilled manpower in this quest.

How has council been working on providing access to employment to skilled candidates and what is your future plan?

The AMH SSC has its own Job portal which is connected to its website, where demand and supply of manpower is displayed. The NSDC has recently developed a Job portal, namely ‘Aseem Portal’ where the entire details of skilled manpower is displayed and the industry can access the same and hire them, as per its requirement.

We are in the process of connecting our Job portal to the Aseem portal of the NSDC.

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Law has always remained the crucial ladder to achieve the sweet fruits of justice and thus, the relevance of law and its teaching will never get old-fashioned. Of course, the quality sustenance and the quality enhancement through innovative and practical law teaching techniques is the need of the hour. The best way to ensure quality and excellence in law teaching is by embracing the New-Normal and also by adhering to the best practices which have brought revolutions in the holistic approach to teaching the law. Thorough and in-depth legal research, innovative quotient, inter-disciplinary approach, use of ICT and other digital teaching aids, continuous self-assessment, impact analysis and overall a global outlook are some of the hallmarks of teaching law in India today which is challenging yet fulfilling task. I firmly believe in the ‘Gladiator Model’ of Law Teaching while cautiously inculcating among students the paramount sense of Social Justice which is meant to serve even the poorest of the poor.

Q As per the Indian Constitution, there is a supremacy of Law in the country & yet people make a mockery of law in the name of agitations and protests. What are your considered views?

The Indian Constitution clearly mandates the supreme law of the land and its entire edifice is dependent on the principle of the Rule of Law as propounded by Dicey. The Rule of law must at any cost be honoured and respected for it is only then we all can claim India to be the World’s largest successful democracy in its true sense. It is true that the democratic credentials of the country are measured by the agitations and protests but only as long as they remain peaceful and do not cause nuisance to the public at large. In fact, peaceful protests and agitations have always remained the harbinger of change and of many successful revolutions but only when such protests are not politically motivated and monitored. In such scenario, even potentially justified protests lose its significance and the very true purpose behind the same. We need to ensure a fair balance to keep the hope alive thereby providing leverage to agitations and protests in order to bring the ground breaking changes through peaceful and democratic means.

Q There is seemingly a huge gap between National Law Universities (NLUs) as a brand and other Law-Schools in the country. How can this gap be bridged?

This question rightly points out that there is seemingly a huge gap. But I am quite sure that the gap only tends to seem and there is no major gap as such.  In my opinion, Non-NLUs are equally contributing in many astonishing ways to the progressive development of legal education in the country. Comparing NLUs and other law schools would tend to compare oranges with apples. NLUs are usually established under a statutory authority and remain autonomous in every way, while there are many barriers for other law schools in the country. Yet, it is surprising in many ways that other law schools are equally giving a tough competition and to a great extent are successful in contributing towards the progress of legal education.

Q Before becoming the Director of a prestigious Law college, you played multiple roles, could you please share in brief your journey of struggle & success?

Prior to my appointment as the Director, I was fortunate enough to serve Bharati Vidyapeeth Deemed to be University New Law College, Pune for more than 25 years. During this long tenure, I took many opportunities to strengthen my both academic and administrative foundations which ultimately helped me to encounter multiple challenges for which I am extremely thankful today. This institution has always remained my cosy place to try new experiments, innovations and best practices which kept on encouraging me to pursue my academic goals. Since my days at the post-graduation, I had a distant crush on the subject of Jurisprudence and administrative law which swiftly and shortly turned into a full-fledged romance soon after I started my journey as a law teacher. I was deeply fascinated by these subjects while I continued teaching to my post-graduate and under-graduate students.  So, I did what I loved and loved what I did. This Mantra has helped me incredibly to embrace success from time to time. 

Q Law is among the most happening professions today, how could you motivate the youth to join Law?

I totally agree that the Law is among the most happening professions today. Initially Law as a profession was widely ignored but as soon as national and local newspapers were filled with stories depicting various interesting court battles, people became aware of the true potential of ‘law as a profession’. Gradually the legal profession evolved and today it promises a secured future to the aspirants of law.

I would strongly suggest this generation of bright young students to join the profession of law. Obtaining a degree in law is like buying a full package of insurance for life. The profession indisputably had undergone a great transformation and now offers opportunities in abundance. However, one must always remember that law is a special calling and thus a supreme sense of social and civic duty is a must.

Q Indian Students are often keen on joining any foreign Universities. As an advocate for promoting Indian Culture and Tradition, how do you address this challenge?

It is true that pursuing education in foreign universities often remains the dream of many law students. In order to deal with this challenge, we must first ensure that our quality in imparting education must bring excellence and greater results in terms of global employability as against our foreign competitors. This seems to be the only way to attract our own students to pursue their education in the homeland.

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Q Education Post is pleased to compliment you for your sustained efforts to add value to both public and private Sectors. Please share story of your struggle and success with our esteemed readers.

I started my career with Escorts Ltd with their Yamaha Motorcycle Division as a Management Trainee. Thereafter, at Apparel Export Promotion Council, which works under Ministry of Textiles, Govt of India. At AEPC I had the privilege of starting and heading its education and skilling vertical Apparel Training and Design Centre and spreading the skilling infrastructure in 25 cities across the country. ATDC is considered a premier institution in Apparel sector skilling ecosystem today.

For about 8 years I also worked with the leading Diagnostic Chain of India Dr. Lal Path Labs and headed their HR and education vertical. In 2014, I joined Apparel, Made-Ups and Home Furnishing Sector Skill Council as CEO and DG and since then, I am engrossed in spreading the ‘Skill India mission’ of the Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi Ji.

The Sector Skill Councils, under different sectors, are spearheading the ‘Skill India Mission’ under the able guidance of Hon’ble Dr. Mahendra Nath Pandey Ji. Working in AMH SSC, I really could plan, execute and implement different schemes and projects, which, working in any other organization, I really couldn’t have done.

 Q Based on your experience, could you please talk about some of the challenges faced by you in upskilling the youth and budding professionals?

In our country, 90% of the workforce works in unorganized sector. Most of them and even those in the organized sector, have learnt skills through traditional means. They know the job but many lack the knowledge as to why they are performing those functions and the details of their job roles, thereof. As such, they need to be informed of the details of their respective job roles. In many cases there are many skill gaps which need to be plugged in.

The Govt of India has started a programme, known as the Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) scheme under Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY). Under this programme, the Sector Skill Councils approach the factories in their respective sectors and give 12 hours of Orientation to the workers. In this orientation, all the details related to the concerned Job role, are made known to the workers, even in their native language, wherever necessary. Thereafter, these workers are assessed thru a third-party assessment mechanism. Those who succeed are certified as per the National Skill Qualification Framework (NSQF). They are not only paid a sum of Rs 500/- each by the Govt but are also given 3 years Accident Insurance cover. All these benefits come to the industry absolutely free of cost.

 Also read: Best MBA Colleges In India

The biggest challenge in this up-skilling process remains the absence of adequate knowledge of this scheme with the Manufacturers or workers. However, the Sector Skill Councils, through their affiliated Training Partners, took up this challenge and have upskilled lacs of workers across various sectors. In the Apparel sector alone, we have certified more than 4 lac workers across India. This process is also repeated in the unorganized sector, whereby, camps are organized and Tailor Masters of that area are invited to undergo the same process of Orientation and then certification. These Tailor Masters are also given the benefits, as mentioned above. Post-certification, they become eligible for different kinds of loans, like Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana (PMMY) or loans being granted by different corporations, like National Backward Classes Financial Development Corporation (NBCFDC) or National Scheduled Classes Financial Development Corporation (NSCFDC). They can get the loan and expand their tailoring business.

Q In the wake of Covid-19, what are the challenges being faced by the Corporate? How do you see new work culture like the present-day norm – Work From Home (WFH)?

The entire world is affected by the COVID-19 Pandemic and the Apparel sector cannot be different. The Apparel sector has got doubly affected, as on the one side the International Buyers have reduced intake and are even asking for heavy discounts on prices and on the other hand the migrant workers working in Apparel sector factories have left for their natives. This has brought in extreme hardship to the Apparel manufacturers. Domestic consumption has also shrunk as most of the people are working from home and that there has been a steady decline in the requirement of formal clothing in the domestic market, as well.

However, there is good news for the Apparel manufacturers who are in the export business. Many western countries, including the USA and Canada, have minimized imports of garments from China. While exports from India are to a tune of appx 20 Billion USD, China exports garments worth 177 Billion USD. Due to the above shift, many buyers have started sourcing garments from India and in coming days prospects of the Indian Garment Industry for exports are extremely bright.

In the Apparel industry, people worked from home till the Lockdown period but slowly the attendance has started getting better. As such, unlike many other industries, like IT or Telecom, people in the Apparel industry have to be personally present in factories and offices. Travel, however, has got minimized and Apparel manufacturers prefer meeting through virtual means.

Q Do you agree that there is a huge gap between the Industry needs and what Educational Institutions are delivering? Could you please suggest some practical solutions to bridge this yawning Gap?

This may be true for some educational institutions, as due to mushrooming ‘Pop and Mom shops’ in the name of MBA or Engineering colleges, the level of education has suffered. However, as far as skilling is concerned, this was true till the start of ‘Skill India’ mission of the Govt of India. Ever since the ‘Skill India’ mission has started and National Skill Qualification Framework (NCQF) has been introduced in the country, the gap between the expectation of the industry and what is taught in institutions has considerably reduced. Sector Skill Councils, which represent industry, have developed standards for each Job role in the most scientific way and as per the expectation of the industry in today’s scenario. The trainings are imparted to the trainees on the most modern machinery and environment, using all modern gadgets. Gone are the days when the skill trainees, after getting certified by the concerned institutions, were not considered ready for jobs. Today, the trainees, coming out of the institutions with NSQF certification just need brief induction in any factory, across the various sectors and can start production quite early.

There is, however, a need to align the recruitment policies of various Public sector undertakings (PSUs) and other Govt and private entities with the NSQF certification. Post such alignment the youth in the country would get attracted towards the courses being run by the Govt of India and State governments under ‘Skill India’ mission and while unemployed youth would get employed, the industry would get enough skilled manpower.

Q As adolescent children are found to be getting involved in many heinous crimes these days, could you suggest some measures to bring such delinquent teenagers back into the mainstream of society.

Thousands of children from 10-17 years commit petty/serious crimes. As per the law related to Juveniles, they cannot be tried in the Court of law and their proceedings are carried on in Juvenile Courts. When convicted, they are also sent to Juvenile Justice Homes for different periods, subject to a maximum of two years.

As experienced, these kids, especially those in the age group of 14-17 years, are quite vulnerable to getting spoiled or distracted towards entering into the criminal world. As a part of ‘Skill India’ mission, most of the Sector Skill Councils have started initiative of providing short-term skills to these kids so that they learn some skills for their livelihood, post their release from Juvenile Homes. Special care is followed by conducting the trainings at Juvenile Homes itself, rather than bringing them to a Training Centre. In the record, their names are also not disclosed to maintain secrecy. They are also treated with extra compassion and care. This step is being repeated in various Juvenile Justice Homes and we believe that in coming days more and more juveniles are skilled to earn a livelihood and are saved from entering criminal world.

Incidentally, for the job role of ‘Self Employed Tailor’, the minimum age to enter is 14 years and, as such, most of the adolescent Juveniles get covered and are, accordingly, skilled and certified.

Q Today, not many companies are serious about their social responsibilities under CSR. Why are corporate values dwindling and how to restore them?

Earlier, it used to be a sweet wish of individual companies to do some charitable activities under their own CSR schemes. Ever since the new Indian Companies Act 2013 came into being, CSR spent has become compulsory for certain companies with some conditions. However, these conditions are such that most of the companies come under its ambit.

The National Skills Policy 2015 also gives a special mention to the proposed CSR spent by Corporates. As per one of its clauses, Companies are encouraged to spend at least 25% of the stipulated 2% of their profit, on Skilling activities, either thru National Skill Development Fund (NSDF), being maintained by the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, Govt of India or thru respective Sector Skill Councils.

Sector Skill Councils, along with NSDC regularly conduct skill trainings in various sectors from the CSR funds of the Corporates and Public Sector Undertakings. The liability of Corporates or PSUs for CSR spent finishes if they make contribution to the Sector Skill Councils. In fact, I would say that spending CSR money thru SSCs would be the most trusted and transparent way and this way the spenders would also be doing a true noble work, as skilling and providing livelihood to unemployed persons seems to be most satisfying.

Q What would be your advice to the youth aspiring to be future Corporate Leaders.

All of us want to reach the top but very few of us make it to those leadership positions. The first and foremost prerequisite of a true leader is to have adequate knowledge of the subject and that too should be up to date. People with little or no knowledge or without latest updates cannot be great leaders. The next trait for being a good leader is being humble and must have a big heart. Short-tempered and narrow-minded seniors cannot be good leaders. The biggest trait in a good leader is the honesty. One cannot be a leader, if his heart is not clean. Those with transparent working attitude often reach the top.

The post Dr. Roopak Vasishtha Says The Prerequisites Of A True Leader appeared first on IIRF.

The NEP 2020 is not just about the financial investment in education; it is about the hope of development of a robust and relevant system. Not only will this new system with multidisciplinary studies help the educational institutions evolve into holistic organizations, but the autonomy would also help them in providing world-class academics and opportunities for the students. Considering the drop outs and long durations of the programmes, this novel system would act as an Academic Bank of Credit- be it providing a certificate course for first year or a diploma for second year- and this will not only encourage the students to continue their studies in future if they drop out, but will also provide them with an academic credit for whatever time they invested.  Establishment of National Research Foundation will provide a major boost to research as well.

Yet another progressive thing about the NEP 2020 is the replacement of current 10+2 system by 5+3+3+4 system—which will restructure pre-school years by providing pedagogical guidelines and assistance, with no formal assessment. The innovative system has recognized the voids in the existing education system that relied comprehensively on rote learning and was criticized for restraining the creativity of the learners.

Q Any policy can be said to cater to only popular thought if there are no voices raised against some of the features. What are the features in the policy that makes the private colleges and institutions restless?

There are numerous challenges that need to be taken care of with the implementation of the NEP 2020. Currently, there’s a scarcity of over 40% of teachers in educational institutions. The first and the foremost challenge is training and developing teachers to make the system work, but also planning a strategy to achieve this. Apart from this, allowing top foreign universities to set up campuses and constituting bodies that would focus on the measurement of learning outcomes, can have a positive impact on the efforts for quality enhancement; however, the private colleges and institutions will have to raise the quality of their academic standards to getquality admissions. Further, ensuring that the remittances earned by the foreign universities are invested in India itself is going to be challenging.To me, however, the biggest challenge is the implementation of the policy in its letter and spirit.

Q How will you perceive the term ‘interdisciplinary’ when compared to the education system that exists in India today?

The NEP 2020 aims at establishing at-least multidisciplinary college in every district, which would give flexibility to choose from myriad subjects ranging from sports, arts, science, humanities, mathematics, etc. at the same time. The present-day system constrained the students to have a resourceful combination of subjects, access the cutting edge curriculum and multiple entry and exit options during the undergraduate courses. Hence, the students entering the industry will also be generalists with depth of their chosen discipline. The fresh approach will nurture intellectual inquisitiveness, a critical thought process, self-reflection, leadership and teamwork skills, professionalism and sensitivity to socio-cultural environment. If substantial investments are made by the government in training the teachers to impart world-class education and upgrading their skills, it would also inspire many quality aspirants to consider their career in academia.

Q Do you think the terms ‘future-ready’, ‘employability’, and ‘job-ready’ have been mercilessly exploited by the corporate world to hide their own inefficiencies? If yes, how must the education industry tackle this? Do corporate too need an overhaul in their attitude?

Our previous education policy was more inclined towards getting high scores and not building skills-and hence the industry didn’t find these graduates fit for employment. The NEP 2020 is based upon research and skill-oriented learning that shall include hands-on learning, experiential learning, critical thinking, regional languages and storytelling apart from the inclusion of contemporary subjects like coding, big data, AI and ML from the 6th standard itself. The emphasis on advanced technologies, from an early age, shall help young minds, to prepare for the digital future and make them ‘future-ready’. This would help the students learn skills that hold prominence in the practical world, with an option for electing various vocational courses—both online and offline—and even take admission in Indian campuses of foreign universities. According to a research by Bloomberg, India would be accounting for 18 percent of the global workforce by the year 2027; and hence, introducing vocational courses and technical knowledge like coding at younger age will upgrade the students and bring the education system at par with the rest of the world. However, educational institutions should help the student develop not only skills required for employment, but also a positive attitude and human values to develop as a successful leader and manager.

On their part, industry will need to allow its employees to innovate and experiment. They will also need to focus on processes and not merely outcomes.

Q There are mentions in NEP 2020 about private and public institutions to be treated at par. What does this really imply? The concept then goes on to add that education is to be ‘not for profit’ for ALL. How do you think this aim can be achieved, considering that there are a number of institutions and universities subsisting on just grants doled out to them?

NEP 2020 aims at increasing expenditure as a percentage of GDP on both education and research and the establishment of National Research Foundation (NRP) will provide research grants to the institutions as well. However, it is important that NRP treats private and public institutions at par. Currently, a few leading centrally funded institutions receive the majority of the funding, and more than 68 percent of private colleges do not receive any aid from the government—and are aided by student’s tuition fees. This has led to disparities among the private institutions and only a few are able to provide quality education to the students—without a fee hike. Apart from this, the educational entrepreneurship in India is limited to coaching centers, and admission to all the higher education institutes based on tests scores conducted by National Testing Authority further encourages this. However, introducing the four-year undergraduate programme with certificate after one year and diploma subsequently would help the students in private institutions as well to transfer their degrees and credits to other universities. There’s a need to also allow the institutions to create a liquid corpus fund that can be invested and saved, and one that can be used during the difficult times like COVID19. The government can encourage more flexibility for the institutes to raise and create corpus which can be used for research or allow a private-for-profit investment in education.

Q Is it time for more eminent educationists to enter politics and make their views heard when implementations are being debated?

Historically, educationists have been a part of the political system. It is time for those numbers to go up as well as discussions on Indian social and political environment to become a part of the educational discourse. We need more educationists to come into politics and we need more politicians to be educated.

Q What is your views on Doing MBA or other professional courses post lockdown has changed the preferences of the regular mode of education.

Classroom education can never be substituted with e-courses. Learning needs to be both in the classroom and outside as well. However, in the current COVID19 times, B-Schools have done everything in their power to ensure quality learning and enable smooth admission processes. While enrolling in any course currently might not be an easy decision, it may prove highly advantageous in the long run. Pursuing a degree during a difficult economy may help the participants gain new knowledge and skills during the crisis and they may benefit after the economic recovery when they graduate. The biggest challenge might not be lack of demand, but the travel restrictions at this stage. However, education can never be restricted to books and laptops since networking and practical knowledge enhances a student’s skills to prepare them for the corporate world.

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