Cabinet nod to merger of skill development policy

Cabinet nod to merger of skill development policy

News

1. Skill sector caters to nearly 15 million students at any given time . The merger of the proposed institutes will bring in credibility to skills sector and increase private investments.

Important facts:

2. The government approved the merger of the National Council for Vocational Training (NCVT) and the National Skill Development Agency (NSDA) to “consolidate fragmented regulatory structures” and improve the outcome of the Skill India mission.

National Council for Vocational Training (NCVT)

• The National Council for Vocational Training, an advisory body, was set up by the Government of India in 1956.
• The Council has been entrusted with the responsibilities of prescribing standards and curricula for craftsmen training, advising the Government of India on the overall policy and programmes, conducting All India Trade Tests and awarding National Trade Certificates.

National Skill Development Agency (NSDA)

• It is a fully autonomous body, constituted on the approval of Union Cabinet of India in 2013.
• It aims to increase Employability of Youth in India.
• NSDA was a policy formulating body of the skill development ministry helping it devise training and industry collaboration policy for the Skill India mission.

3. The merged entity would be called the National Council for Vocational Education and Training (NCVET).
4. Functioning of NCVET

• recognition and regulation of awarding bodies, assessment bodies and skill related information providers;
• approval of qualifications developed by awarding bodies and Sector Skill Councils (SSCs);
• indirect regulation of vocational training institutes through awarding bodies and assessment agencies;
• research and information dissemination;
• grievance redressal.

Issues with Quality control

5. Quality control has been a constant worry for the skill development sector in India with the mushrooming of skill schools across India.
6. Though Skill India had been a talking point for the government over the last few years, there has hardly been any quality assessment or monitoring of the sector, essential to the supply of efficient manpower to industries .
7. Benefits of the proposed merger

• improvement in quality and market relevance of skill development programs
• lending credibility to vocational education and training encouraging greater private investment and employer participation in the skills space
• enhance the aspirational value of vocational education
• Increase in skilled manpower furthers the Prime Minister’s vision of making India the skill capital of the world.
• encouragement to students to apply for skill-based educational courses.
• facilitate the ease of doing business by providing a steady supply of skilled workforce to the industry and services.