Dimapur (Nagaland) : The State Government has plans to revive skill development programmes by “Re-energising (its) Partnership” with colleges and schools in Nagaland that have vocational education as part of its curriculum, according to Mmhonlumo Kikon, parliamentary secretary for Labour, Employment, Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, and Border Affairs.
Kikon said that this second wave of skilling the youths of Nagaland has been made possible by the Union cabinet’s decision to allocate 25% of the total training targets to the state governments under the flagship programme of Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY).
Speaking at the 7th foundation day-cum-parents’ day of Cornerstone School and College here on Monday, Kikon said that the Union cabinet has approved an outlay of Rs.12000 crore for PMKVY to impart skilling to 1 crore people over the next four years (2016-2020).
Currently, there are more than 40 skill development programmes of the government of India (GoI) being implemented by 18 different central ministries/departments. Some the schemes follow the National Skills Qualifications Framework (NSQF), notified in the year 2013.
The first ever monetary reward scheme for skill development was launched in the year 2013 after it was announced in the 2013-14 budget. Thus the Standard Training Assessment and Reward scheme (STAR) was launched in August 2013.
The STAR scheme was rechristened as PMKVY after the NDA came to power in 2014. Both PMKVY and STAR are Skill Certification & Monetary Reward programmes. Both the schemes were implemented by the government of India through the various Sector Skill Councils (SSCs) and the National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC).
Training Partners affiliated to NSDC and SSCs are entrusted with the job of skilling. Thus state governments had very little role to play in the implementation of these schemes. The decision of the Union cabinet, however, has changed that.
Now state governments would be involved through a project-based approach under the PMKVY with 25% of the total training targets, both financial and physical. The financial budget for achieving 25% of the total training targets would be directly allocated to the states.
With this share in the bank now, Kikon said, the state government was willing to help any college or school interested in incorporating skill development in their curriculum. Cornerstone School and College is one of the few institutes in Nagaland that teaches skill development.
The emphasis on skill development was important because, according to Kikon, the “employability of our students who graduate from our colleges have been found wanting”. At present, there were 70, 420 unemployed youths registered with the state’s department of Employment, he informed.
“Frankly, some of them are unemployable. But the inability to facilitate our youth in the private sector is one of the major reasons behind the high unemployment rate (in Nagaland),” Kikon said. To employ the youths, according to him, was not only the state government’s problem.
“We are all involved here. It is our problem,” Kikon said while encouraging educational institutions to partner with the state government on skill development programmes. He also said that blaming “illegal migrants” for unemployment was simply an “excuse for laziness”.
“We need to have the mental orientation to work under any circumstances. As long as we do not realize our limitations, our future will always be bleak,” he said.
On the occasion, the concert artist Nise Meruno interacted with the students and also presented two of his originals. Other presentation of songs and dances from the students of the institute marked the occasion.
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