To provide employment opportunities to rural youth of the country, prime minister Narendra Modi has launched 511 Pramod Mahajan Grameen Kaushalya Vikas Kendras in Maharashtra.

The Grameen Kaushalya Vikas Kendras will conduct skill development training programmes across various sectors to provide employment opportunities to rural youth across 34 rural districts of the state.

In his address via video conferencing on Thursday, Modi said that on the fifth day of Navratra when Skanda Mata is worshipped and every mother wishes for happiness and success for their children, “this can only be made possible through education and skill development.”  

He said that the demand for skilled Indian youth is growing globally and age profile is increasing in the demography of many countries. He noted findings of a study according to which 16 countries have planned to provide employment to about 40 lakh skilled youth and said, “India is preparing skilled professionals for the world, not just for itself.”

The PM said that the skill centres in Maharashtra will prepare the local youth for global jobs and will skill them in construction, modern farming, media and entertainment, and electronics. He also emphasised the need to provide training in soft skills such as basic foreign language skills, using AI tools for language interpretation which will make them more attractive for the recruiters.  

Each Kendra will train about 100 youngsters in at least two vocational courses. The training will be provided by empanelled industry partners and agencies under the National Skill Development Council. The establishment of these Kendras will help the region attain significant strides towards developing a more competent and skilled manpower.

The PM pointed out that, understanding the need for skill development, the government has created a separate ministry dedicated to it with its own budgetary allocation and multiple schemes.
 
He added that under the Kaushal Vikas Scheme, more than 1.30 crore youth have been provided training under multiple traits, while more than hundreds of Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Kendras have been established all over the country.

Further, underlining the contribution of skill development initiatives in bolstering social justice, Modi alluded to the philosophy of Babasaheb Ambedkar that focussed on industrialisation for the upliftment of dalits, backwards and tribals as their landholdings were meagre. “Due to a lack of skills in the past, these sections were deprived of the opportunity of getting quality jobs. Most benefit from the government’s skill development initiatives is being derived by the poor, dalit, backward and adivasi families,” he said.

He recalled the contributions of Savitri Bai Phule in breaking the shackles of society when it came to the education of women, and said that only those with knowledge and skill can bring about a positive change in society.

He added that Savitri Bai Phule has been the inspiration behind the government’s emphasis on women’s education and training. He said self-help groups or ‘Swayam Sahayata Samuh’ impart training among women, and said that specialised training has been provided to more than 3 crore women under the Women Empowerment programme. He also said that women should be trained and encouraged to make use of drones in agriculture and other sectors.

While referring to professions that are being carried forward over the generations in the villages, PM Modi talked about the PM Vishwakarma Yojana that has been started to help professions  like  barber, carpenter, washerman, goldsmith or ironsmith. He said that training, modern equipment and financial assistance are being provided under the same. “Government is spending Rs 13,000 crore on this and in Maharashtra, 500-plus skill centres will take this forward,” he said.  

In the same vein, the PM also underlined the need for good quality products or products with zero defects in India’s manufacturing industry and also touched upon Industry 4.0 which requires new skills. He said that governments will also have to emphasise new skills keeping in mind the service sector, knowledge economy and modern technology. He emphasised that it is important to  work on manufacturing products that will lead the nation towards self-reliance. “We have to promote the skills required to manufacture such products,” he said.

He also called for natural farming practices to protect Mother Earth and talked about the need for skills to assess balanced irrigation, agri-product processing, packaging, branding, and skilling people to get connected with the online world. He added that it is the duty of society to acknowledge the dignity of labour and recognise the importance of skilled work.

Maharashtra chief minister, Eknath Shinde and deputy CMs Devendra Fadnavis and Ajit Pawar were present also present on the occasion.