• Small shops, basements, tin sheds and godowns are places where private Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) are running in the country.
• Disturbing facts such as these come from the report of the Standing Committee on Labour (2017-18) headed by Bharatiya Janata Party MP Kirit Somaiya, on the “Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) and Skill Development Initiative Scheme” of the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE). It was submitted to Parliament few months ago.
EXPLAINING THE SCALE-UP
• The ITIs were initiated in the 1950s. In a span of 60 years, until 2007, around 1,896 public and 2,000 private ITIs were set up. However, in a 10-year period from 2007, more than 9,000 additional private ITIs were accredited.
• The National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) today has more than 6,000 private training centres. Since it has short-term courses and its centres open and close frequently, it is all the more prone to a dilution of standards.
• Private training partners have mushroomed at the rate of five a day (mostly with government support) and it is clear that the government has been unable to regulate private institutions for quality.
• Meanwhile, the lack of a regulator for skill development, with teeth, has led to poor quality affiliation, assessment and certification.
• The Somaiya committee report is scathing in its tone and specific in details. It outlines instances of responsibility outsourcing, no oversight, connivance and an ownership tussle between the Central and State governments.
• Even the Quality Council of India did not following the accreditation norms created by National Council for Vocational Training (NCVT).
• ITI’s were formed under the government’s Craftsman Training Scheme scheme, their day-to-day administration, finances and admissions are with State governments. This also creates the problem.
• There were no Aadhaar checks, attendance requirements and batch size limitations after grant of accreditation . Private training operators have made a profit with no court cases.
• They had lesser courses and they are paid fairly less.
A STARTING POINT
• A good point to start would be the Sharda Prasad Committee recommendations.
• We need better oversight, with a national board for all skill development programmes. The core work (accreditation, assessment, certification and course standards) cannot be outsourced. Like every other education board (such as the CBSE), a board is required in vocational training that is accountable.
• Since we have the NCVT - National Council for Vocational Training (NCVT). as a legacy, it should be used as a kernel to constitute the board. We should also have a mandatory rating system for the ITIs that is published periodically. A ranking of the ITIs on several parameters such as the one done by the National Assessment and Accreditation Council in tertiary education can be replicated.
• There should be one system, with one law and one national vocational education and training system.
• We need to create a unified national vocational system where the ITIs, NSDC private vocational trainers and vocational education in schools, and the other Central ministries conducting training gel seamlessly and can learn from, and work with each other.
• A unified legal framework can facilitate such a unification.
• What we need is a national vocational act that replaces all scattered regulations — recommended in the 12th Five Year Plan.
• The ITIs have many internal issues such as staffing and salaries that need attention, as the NILERD nationwide survey in 2011 had found.
• Institutional reforms such as moving the office of the Directorate General of Employment (the arm that has all data on employment) from the Ministry of Labour to the MSDE would help. It would also complement the Directorate General of Training already under MSDE.
EMPLOYERS AND FINANCING
• Given the scale of our demographic challenge, a belief that financing from corporate social responsibility, multilateral organisations such as the World Bank, and the government will meet the financial needs for skill development is wishful thinking.
• The only way to mobilise adequate resources the right way is to do skills training, and have equipment and tools that keep pace with changing needs and ensure that employers have skin in the game.
• Finally, while there is so much talk of skills for the future and the impact of artificial intelligence and automation, data show that 13.8 lakh students in the ITIs are suffering due to poor institutional accreditation.
• Placement in NSDC training has been less than 15%. Maybe if we take care of the present, we will be better prepared for the future.
Courtesy :-
The Hindu 07.08.2018