Chennai : Tamil Nadu tops in skill development with 700 centres for learning. It has already been implemented with 20 lakh people being trained and the government is looking over four crore people by 2020.
Stating this at a discussion held at Loyola College, Tamilnadu Open University (TNOU) Vice-Chancellor, M Bhaskaran, added, “Only in 2014 was there a separate Ministry formed for skill development and entrepreneurship.”
Hosted by the US Consulate General, Chennai, and Indian Centre for Research and Development of Community Education, the event saw US expert in skill development, Dr Louay Constant, speak on ‘Skill Development: Global trends and best practices’.
Bhaskaran said there were various schemes and tie-ups with leading companies for jobs after people complete the course.
The syllabus for these courses consists of 90 per cent practical and 10 per cent theoretical work. TNOU has tied up with many leading colleges in the State for improving the skill training standards.
Though one develops skills, it needs to be recognised by an university, he said. TNOU will help with this, he added.
Managing Trustee, Arise Foundation, Jambulinkam, said, “In 2015-16 over 60 lakh classrooms and 40 lakh recognized prior learning centres have been formed.”
Speaking on the topic of ‘Workforce development and the role of technical and vocational education and training,’ Professor Louay Constant said, “Vocational education is the need of the hour. There is a cultural stigma that needs to be addressed in India. Only by doing so will the country meet the requirement of skilled labour force. High quality education needs to be provided through both private sector and traditional vocational education system.”
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