Lok Sabha Question No. 218 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-07-21
Subject: Skill India Assistant Chatbot
Ministry: SKILL DEVELOPMENT AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP
Asked by: Smt. Poonamben Hematbhai Maadam

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF SKILL DEVELOPMENT AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 218

ANSWERED ON 21.07.2025

## SKILL INDIA ASSISTANT CHATBOT

218. SMT. POONAMBEN HEMATBHAI MAADAM:

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

- (a) whether the Government has developed the Skill India Assistant (SIA), an AI-based chatbot,  to  enhance  access  to  skilling  opportunities  and  job-related  services  for  citizens across the country;
- (b) if so, the details there of;
- (c) whether any awareness campaigns are being planned by the Government to promote the usage of the chatbot among the youth and if so, the details thereof;
- (d) whether the Government has taken any steps to ensure that the Skill India Assistant Chatbot is accessible for people with disabilities; and
- (e) if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER

THE  MINISTER  OF  STATE  (INDEPENDENT  CHARGE)  IN  THE  MINISTRY  OF  SKILL DEVELOPMENT AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP

(SHRI JAYANT CHAUDHARY)

(a) & (b): Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) launched the Skill India Assistant (SIA)- an AI-powered chatbot to enhance access to skilling and employmentrelated services for citizens across the country. The chatbot has been developed by META and National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) under the aegis of MSDE. SIA leverages conversational AI to deliver personalized support via WhatsApp, thereby promoting digital inclusion and ensuring service delivery in the skilling ecosystem.

Key Features of Skill India Assistant (SIA) are as under:

- (i) Access  Point:  Available  through  the  Skill  India  Digital  Hub  (SIDH)  platform  and  via WhatsApp.
- (ii) AI Foundation: Built using Meta's open -source LLaMA (Large Language Model).
- (iii)  Core Capabilities: Tailored recommendations for courses, Locator for nearby training centres, Job listings aligned with user skills, and Interactive quizzes and on-demand doubt clearing
- (iv) Multilingual Support: Interaction via text or voice in English, Hindi, and Hinglish.
- (v)  24/7 Availability: Operational round the clock to provide continuous support.
- (vi) Inclusive  and Scalable Design: Represents the first large-scale deployment of opensource AI within a national public skilling mission.
- (vii)  Extended Outreach: Utilizes WhatsApp to serve users in rural and underserved areas with limited access to high-speed internet or computing devices.

(c) to (e): MSDE has taken comprehensive awareness campaign to promote the adoption of the Skill India Assistant (SIA) among youth and other target groups through social media.

To ensure accessibility to all individuals including people with disabilities and people from rural areas, Skill India Assistant (SIA) includes the following feature:

- (i) Multilingual and Multimodal Interface: SIA supports communication in English, Hindi, and Hinglish. SIA also offers both voice and text-based interaction to support users with limited literacy or digital proficiency.
- (ii)  Low-bandwidth Compatibility: SIA is delivered via WhatsApp, making it easily accessible on basic smartphones  without the need  for high-speed internet or  advanced applications.

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