Lok Sabha Question No. 33 (STARRED), answered on 2024-02-05
Subject: Promotion of Digital Public Infrastructure
Ministry: SKILL DEVELOPMENT AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP
Asked by: Krishna Pal Singh Yadav, Sujay Radhakrishna Vikhepatil

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF SKILL DEVELOPMENT AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP

## LOK SABHA

## STARRED QUESTION NO.33 ANSWERED ON 05.02.2024

## PROMOTION OF DIGITAL PUBLIC INFRASTRUCTURE

*33. DR. KRISHNA PAL SINGH YADAV: DR. SUJAY RADHAKRISHNA VIKHE PATIL:

Will  the  Minister  of  SKILL  DEVELOPMENT  AND  ENTREPRENEURSHIP be pleased to state:

- (a) the different schemes being administered by the Government to promote Skill Development and Entrepreneurship;
- (b) the number of persons trained under each Scheme and financial outlay thereof;
- (c) the details of Skill India Digital initiative launched by the Ministry along with its objectives;
- (d) whether the initiative will promote the Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) in the country and if so, the manner in which it will support the industry; and
- (e) the details of the benefits that will accrue to a citizen under Skill India Digital Initiative?

## ANSWER

MINISTER OF SKILL DEVELOPMENT AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP (SHRI DHARMENDRA PRADHAN)

- (a) to (e)          A Statement is laid on the Table of the House.

## STATEMENT REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PARTS (A) TO (E) OF LOK SABHA STARRED QUESTION  NO.*33  TO  BE  ANSWERED  ON  05.02.2024  ASKED  BY  DR.  KRISHNA  PAL SINGH YADAV AND DR. SUJAY RADHAKRISHNA VIKHE PATIL REGARDING PROMOTION OF DIGITAL PUBLIC INFRASTRUCTURE.

(a) and (b) Under  the Govt. of India's Skill India Mission (SIM), the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) delivers skill, re-skill and up-skill training through an extensive network of skill development centres/ institutes under various schemes, viz. Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY), Jan Sikhshan Sansthan (JSS), National Apprenticeship Promotion Scheme (NAPS) and Craftsman Training Scheme (CTS) through Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs), to all the sections of the society across the country. The SIM aims at enabling youth  of  India  to  get  future  ready,  equipped  with  industry  relevant  skills.  The  brief  of  these schemes is as under:

Pradhan  Mantri  Kaushal  Vikas  Yojana  (PMKVY) :  PMKVY  Scheme  is  for  imparting  skill development training through Short-Term Training (STT) and up-skilling and re-skilling through Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) to youth across the country.

Jan Shikshan Sansthan (JSS) Scheme : The main target of the JSS is to impart vocational skills to  the  non-literates,  neo-literates  and  the  persons  having  rudimentary  level  of  education  and school dropouts upto 12th standard in the age group of 15-45 years, with due age relaxation in case of 'Divyangjan' and other deserving cases. Priority is given to Women, SC, ST, OBC and Minorities in the rural areas and urban low-income areas.

National Apprenticeship  Promotion  Scheme  (NAPS) : This Scheme  is for promoting apprenticeship  training  and  increasing  the  engagement  of  apprentices  by  providing  financial support to industrial establishments undertaking apprenticeship programme under the Apprentices Act, 1961.  Training consists of Basic  Training and On-the-Job Training /  Practical Training at workplace in the industry.

Craftsmen  Training  Scheme  (CTS) :  This  scheme  is  for  providing  long-term  training  through Industrial  Training  Institutes  (ITIs)  across  the  country.  The  ITIs  offer  a  range  of  vocational/skill training courses covering a large number of economic sectors with an objective to provide skilled workforce to the industry as well as self employment of youth.

Programmes  for entrepreneurship development are implemented through National Institute  for  Entrepreneurship  and  Small  Business  Development  (NIESBUD),  Noida  and  Indian Institute of Entrepreneurship (IIE), Guwahati.

The number of persons trained under MSDE schemes are as under:

|   Sl. No. | Schemes                                   |   Total No. of persons trained |
|-----------|-------------------------------------------|--------------------------------|
|         1 | PMKVY (Since inception to December, 2023) |                         140.81 |
|         2 | JSS (Since 2018-19 to December, 2023)     |                          22.96 |
|         3 | NAPS (Since 2018-19 to December, 2023)    |                          27.12 |
|         4 | CTS (2018-19 to 2022-23)                  |                          65.11 |

(in lakh)

The funds released under PMKVY, JSS and NAPS Schemes of MSDE are as under: (Amount in Rs. Crore)

| Name of Scheme                            | Total Fund Released   |
|-------------------------------------------|-----------------------|
| PMKVY (Since inception to December, 2023) | 10,314.02             |
| JSS (Since 2018-19 to December, 2023      | 694.10                |
| NAPS (Since 2018-19 to December, 2023)    | 1231.76               |

Note: From 2023-24, Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) has been implemented and stipend is being credited directly into the accounts of apprentices.

Day-to-day  administration  as  well  as  financial  control  in  respect  of  ITIs  lies  with  the respective State Government/ Union Territory Administration.

Apart from MSDE, more than 20 Central Ministries are implementing Skilling/ Upskilling training  programmes  through  various  schemes,  such  as  Deen  Dayal  Upadhyaya  Grameen Kaushalya Yojna (DDU-GKY) and Rural Self Employment Training Institutes (RSETIs) of Ministry of Rural Development, Deen Dayal Antyodaya Yojna - National Urban Livelihood Mission (DAYNULM) by Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) and Scheme for Capacity Building in Textile Sector (SAMARTH), Ministry of Textiles.

- (c) Skill  India  Digital  is  at  the  intersection  of  two  of  the  most  important  priorities  of  the Government  -  Skill  India  and  Digital  India.  It  is  a  mobile  -  first  digital  platform  designed  to synergize India's skill development, education, employment and entrepreneurship landscape. Its primary  objective  is  to  expand  the  reach  of  skilling.  It  will  provide  opportunity  to  youth  of  the country  to  skill,  re-skill  and  upskill  digitally  without  depending  only  upon  physical  training infrastructure.  It  provides  a  comprehensive  and  accessible  platform  for  skill  enhancement, offering industryrelevant skill courses, apprenticeship and job opportunities, and entrepreneurship  support.  SID  is  a  digital  expansion  of  skilling  opportunities  and  integrated platform that have digital job exchange between stakeholders. The SID platform and its mobile application were launched on 13th September 2023.

(d) Yes,  Sir.  Skill  India  Digital  is  one  of  the  most  important  applications  of  India's  Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) for skill development, education, employment, and entrepreneurship landscape.  The  platform  aligns  with  the  vision  articulated  in  the  G20  outcome  document  for building DPIs.

Skill India Digital plays a crucial role in preparing the Indian workforce for Industry 4.0 by offering  futuristic  courses  on  Big  Data,  Machine  Learning  and  Analytics,  etc.  provided  by  its digital  learning  partners.  Industry  4.0  course  such  as  Python  with  Advanced  AI,  Artificial Intelligence Foundation, Generative AI, Build Classical Machine Learning Models with Supervised Learning, Data Analytics Essentials, Analytics Data in a Relational Data Warehouse, Cyber  security  Essentials,  Introduction  to  Data  Science,  Kisan  Drone  Operator,  EV  Service Technician, Bio- waste Management, along with other certification courses, are being offered on the platform.

(e) The National Education Policy (NEP), 2020 envisages education and skilling integration and lifelong learning. Skill India Digital is a citizen-centric platform that empowers every citizen to select and learn skill courses aligned to their knowledge and interests. It helps to select skill courses aligned with the  education and  career  goals. Skill India  Digital  hosts  both  online  and classroom-based skill courses.

SID is integrated with UIDAI, e-Shram, NCS and Digilocker, empowering learners to earn, bank  and  redeem  the  credits  they  have  earned  through  skill  courses  and  /  or  through  work experience.  SID  caters  diverse  needs  of  a  citizen  through  Learning  Management  System  for digital skilling, Portable Verified Credentials and Multi-lingual choice to ensure inclusivity, etc.

Skill  India  Digital  also  enables  the  convergence  of  skilling  program  for  all  Ministries/ Departments of Central Government and of the State Governments, empowering every citizen to select from multiple skilling programs as per their preference. In this post covid world there is tremendous awareness of digital skills. Skill India Digital will enable Entrepreneurship and future ready workforce.

*****