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NeW INDiA
Prime Minister Narendra Modi seems intent on placing renewed emphasis on skill development in the services and manufacturing sectors. the Prime Minister spoke of his ‘skilled India’ mission to promote holistic develo pment. There is no doubt that India needs to equip its youth with greater work skills. At present, the country churns out a mostly semi-literate workforce without the requisite marketable skills in a globalised world. According to a report by the Adviser to the Prime Minister on the National Council on Skill Development, among those in the 15 to 29 years age group, only 2 per cent have received formal vocational training, and 8 per cent non-formal vocational training. Modi spoke of forming a pool of young people who are able to create jobs. More importantly, he also talked of a workforce that will be in a position to “face their counterparts in any corner of the world” by virtue of hard work and dexterity of hands. Capacity-building was spoken of in the global context as the ability of India’s youth to “win the hearts of people around the world” through their skills. The importance of promoting the manufacturing sector was highlighted both in the context of creating employment opportunities and developing a balance between imports and exports. Prime Minister’s Skill India Mission is all set to get a major boost with cricket icon Sachin Tendulkar endorsing the ‘I Support Skill India’ campaign of the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE)