RPL Initiatives from Furniture and Fittings Skill Council (FFSC)

Furniture & Fittings Skill Council (FFSC) is a Not-for-Profit organization that is registered under societies Registration Act XXI of 1860. The Council is promoted by CII (Confederation of Indian Industry) and the financial support is given by from the National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC). FFSC has been implementing Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) projects in different locations in India to recognize informal learning in furniture and fittings industry*. Let’s get to know about some of them.

This sector skill council aims to focus on establishing an effective and efficient eco-system for the development and imparting of skills for the Furniture& Fittings industry which includes relevant curriculum, courses, information database, delivery system, standardization, accreditation and certification processes to enhance the employability of the Indian workforce globally.

The mandates for FFSC are:

• Setting up Labour Market Information System (LMIS) to assist planning and delivery of training.
• Develop a sector skill development plan for the furniture & fittings industry.
• Development of National Occupational Standards (NOS) customized and implemented towards Indian Standards & Requirements and adopted by the furniture& fittings industry.
• Developing career path, skill competency standards and qualifications for upgrading youth/work force at par with the developed countries.
• To help the member organizations across market verticals sharpen their business focus, updating on the emerging market trends and development.
• Standardization of affiliation and accreditation process & participation in the process.
• Plan and execute training of trainers.
• Ensure delivery of training programs by accredited organizations as per industry norms and standards.

The Furniture & Fittings Skill Council is aiming to carry out pilot training projects in different states based on an Occupational Standards led curriculum and content.

RPL training and certification

Under the PMKVY scheme, FFSC is doing both fresh training and Recognition of Prior Learning with 80% of average pass percentage. The affiliated training partners have provided support for this. The figures are as follows (These figures keep changing on a daily basis and are only indicative*).

Number of candidates skilled by FFSC with Fresh Training: 18619

Number of candidates skilled by FFSC for RPL: 7143

 The various job roles that are skilled under RPL:

• Assistant Carpenter Wooden Furniture
• Carpenter Wooden Furniture
• Fitter- Modular Furniture
• Lock technician

How the candidates and employers have benefitted from RPL training and certification:

Gaurav (18 years)

Gaurav has five members in his family. The responsibility of getting his younger sister married rests on his shoulders. He came across pamphlets where it was mentioned that if you do a course in carpentry under PMKVY then you can start your own business. He enrolled himself into the course has learnt how to use the various carpentry tools like handsaw, hammer, etc to make channels and tables. After the completion of the course he plans to start his own carpentry business like many others and help his family and also have a grand wedding for his sister.

Mahesh

Sachin Tendulkar makes the Mahesh the carpenter realise how skilled he is and that there is no difference between him and the cricketer. Both are equally talented and have magic in their hands. Mahesh has turned a piece of wood into an awesome chair which is commendable. Tendulkar encourages people to support skill India and enable a lot of talented people to showcase their skills and help our economy grow.

(* All the numbers mentioned in this article are indicative of the RPL achievements till March – April 2017)