IndiaSkills 2021 National Competition: Odisha tops the chart with 51 medals

The recently held IndiaSkills 2021 National Competition witnessed the participation of over 500 students from 26 states/ union territories in 54 skills such as concrete construction work, beauty therapy, confectionery, car painting, health and social care, visual merchandising, wall and floor tiling, welding, among others. Odisha topped the chart by winning 10 Gold, 18 Silver and 9 Bronze medals followed by Maharastra with 30 winners and Kerala with 25 winners.

Out of more than 150 winners, 59 were awarded gold medals with a cash prize of INR 100,000, 73 were given silver medals with a prize money of INR 75,000 and 53 received bronze medals with a cash prize of INR 50,000. More than 50 participants won the Medallion of Excellence. This year’s IndiaSkills Competition has raised the bar of skill development by witnessing over 2.5 lakh registrations in August-September 2021.

The IndiaSkills 2021 Nationals have ended on 10^th January, 2022 in which more than 150 participants were felicitated by Rajesh Aggarwal, Secretary, Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE), Government of India.

Rajesh Aggarwal, Secretary said that the government, industry and experts will work together to ensure that Team India is best equipped with the training and tools to perform their best at WorldSkills International Competition which will be held in Shanghai, China later this year.

Ved Mani Tiwari, Chief Operating Officer and Officiating Chief Executive Officer, National Skill Development Corporation said that skills create opportunities, build societies and fuel economic growth. The new-age skills show how IndiaSkills Competition leads to future-relevant trades and job roles.

Highlights of IndiaSkills 2021 National Competition

• Abilympics – Skill Demonstration by Persons with Disabilities

IndiaSkills 2021 National Competition also featured Abilympics, a demonstration of skills by Persons with Disabilities (PwDs) in 16 skills including computer programming, painting, embroidery and poster designing. With such participation, IndiaSkills has the potential to reach the grass-root level and is a major step towards bridging the gap between the demand and supply of a skilled workforce.

• Demonstration Skills

IndiaSkills 2021 introduced three new skills such as yoga, shoe making and garment making to showcase opportunities for candidates in these trades.

• New-Age Skills

Seven new-age skills such as robot systems integration, additive manufacturing, digital construction, industry 4.0, renewable energy, industrial design technology and mobile applications development have been introduced to this year’s competition.

• Women Participation

Plumbing and Heating skill witnessed participation by a female candidate for the first time ever. Landscape and gardening skill had two all-women teams. Visual merchandising was female dominated too. Mobile robotics also saw a team of two girls. Women are breaking stereotypes and participating in all kinds of skills.

• Industry supporting IndiaSkills

The event has received tremendous response from the industry and partner institutions supporting infrastructure, experts and equipment need for skill training of candidates during workshops, boot camps and the competitions.

• Partner Institutes

The partner institutes who have supported the IndiaSkills National Competition include Maruti Suzuki, Larsen & Toubro, Festo India, Hotel Leela, Toyota India, CBIP, Concept Mahindra, Academy of Pastry and Culinary Arts, Government Tool Room and Training Centre (GTTC), Karnataka German Technical Training Institutes (KGTTI) and Indian Machine Tool Manufacturers’ Association (IMTMA), Bengaluru, ICT Center of Excellence, Mumbai, IndiaTV News (as media partner) and Playtonia (as gaming partner) and more.

• Journey from IndiaSkills to WorldSkills

IndiaSkills 2021 National Competition (from 7 to 9 January) has been conducted following four Regional Competitions that were held in East (Patna), West (Gandhinagar), North (Chandigarh) and South (Visakhapatnam) during October-December. The winners of IndiaSkills 2021 Nationals will undergo rigorous training to represent India at WorldSkills Shanghai, China to be held in October 2022.

This competition was held at different locations including Pragati Maidan and offsite locations in the National Capital Region in which over 500 participants from 26 states/ union territories have participated from 7 to 9 January following the Covid-19 protocols.

Also read: NSN weekly round-up on skills, education and training- 11012022 https://nationalskillsnetwork.in/nsn-weekly-round-up-on-skills-education-and-training-11012022/

Additionally, all safety protocols were followed including no entry for visitors/ spectators, social distancing and frequent sanitization of the competition premises. Also, to maintain the distance of the participants, the competitions for eight skills were conducted in Bengaluru and Mumbai from 3 to 5 January.