India is making significant strides in skill development with new government initiatives aimed at workforce expansion and integration. Goa is strengthening vocational education by establishing Centres of Excellence at five ITIs in collaboration with Tata Technologies. Additionally, initiatives like the Women Welding Fraternity Competition 2025 are fostering skill excellence and industry-academia collaboration, opening new doors for women in technical fields.
In this week’s Newsbytes from NSN, we cover everything from groundbreaking government policies to industry-driven skilling, CSR initiatives, and the latest from NEP 2020, UGC, and NCVET. Dive into how these updates are shaping the future of education and employment in India.
Here we go with this week’s edition of our weekly newsbytes,
This week’s highlights in skill education
Goa’s initiatives to strengthen vocational education
- The government of Goa announced the establishment of Centres of Excellence at five ITIs in collaboration with Tata Technologies, emphasizing the need to integrate ITI education with mainstream academic qualifications.
- Goa has implemented NEP 2020, integrating vocational training into school curricula over the past two years.
- Goa has announced plans to equate two-year ITI courses with HSSC from the next academic year for job eligibility.
- Goa CM lauded ITIs for achieving ISO certification and emphasized their role in skilling, upskilling, and reskilling.
Women Welding Fraternity Competition 2025 – Registrations Now Open!
Fronius India, a leader in welding technology and skill development, is thrilled to announce the Women Welding Fraternity Competition 2025 (WWFc-2025)—a groundbreaking initiative to recognize and celebrate the incredible contributions of women in welding. This competition aims to empower women welders, promote skill excellence, and foster academia-industry collaboration, creating new opportunities for women in this traditionally male-dominated field. The registrations for the competion are now open! Click here to register now!
Union Budget 2025-26: Highlights on Skills, Education, Employment, and Entrepreneurship
Union Minister for Finance and Corporate Affairs, Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman, unveiled the Union Budget for 2025-26 on February 1, 2025, with a clear vision to steer India towards a “Viksit Bharat” – developed India. The budget highlights key measures to strengthen skills, education, employment, and entrepreneurship. Read more…
Skill development updates from the Government
- The government of Meghalaya announced plans to develop a world-class skill development ecosystem aimed to train 1 lakh individuals for domestic placements and 10,000 for international opportunities.
- The Union Tourism Ministry’s Calcutta office and Experience Incredible Journey trust conducted training in Rikisum, Kalimpong, to upskill homestay owners, cab drivers, and tourism stakeholders in North Bengal and the Northeast.
- Union Minister Dr. Mansukh Mandaviya launched e-Shram State/UT Microsites and the Occupational Shortage Index (OSI) to enhance workforce planning and job matching, ensuring better access to welfare schemes, skilling, and employment opportunities.
- At WEF 2025, discussions between Uttar Pradesh and UAE focused on private sector investments, logistics, and agriculture exports via Jewar Airport.
- The government of Assam has announced plans to build modern schools in every assembly constituency to transform education.
Skill development updates on CSR, Industry
- SBI launched a special training program across 153 RSETIs to upskill 5,200 women in 27 trades, promoting empowerment through skills, financial guidance, and market linkages.
- The Automotive Skills Development Council (ASDC), Nepal Automobile Dealers Association (NADA), and Automotive Component Manufacturers Association (ACMA) have signed an MoU to strengthen skill development in Nepal’s automotive sector through high-quality training and certification programs.
- The National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC), CoLLearn, and Shikhar Dhawan’s DA One Sports have collaborated to upskill cricket coaches across India through workshops, skill loans, classroom training, and placement support.
- LogiMAT India 2025 has partnered with the Logistics Sector Skill Council (LSC) to bridge the skills gap in India’s logistics industry, addressing the challenge of 44% of the workforce lacking vocational training.
- Aspire Knowledge and Skills India Pvt. Ltd. launched the nationwide ‘Code Karega Bharat’ campaign on January 25, 2025, in Pune to upskill future software developers, with key industry and academic leaders in attendance.
- India’s unemployment rate rose to 8.3% in December 2024, with emerging sectors like EVs, semiconductors, and healthcare driving future job growth.
- Toyota Kirloskar Motor partnered with B.L.D.E.A’s College to establish a Centre of Excellence for automotive skill development.
- Indian Hotel Academy’s “A Skilled India is A Stronger India” conclave honored 300 hospitality professionals under Skill India Mission.
- The Economic Survey 2024-25 recognized the Tim Tim Tare initiative for equipping 10 crore students with life skills and emotional intelligence.
To know more, check out the latest updates on CSR and ESG initiatives that are creating a meaningful impact in skill development and education here: https://nationalskillsnetwork.in/csr-and-esg-in-skill-education/
Skilling and upskilling in academia and emerging technologies
- A skill development diploma course at Kodagu University was launched to enhancing student’s employability to emphasize the significance of skill acquisition.
- Four women nurses from Sikkim have joined Germany’s St. Anna Stift Nursing Home under the Sikkim INSPIRES Program, reflecting the state’s commitment to global career opportunities and women’s empowerment.
- STPI will set up an EV-focused Centre of Excellence in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar to boost IT and EV investments.
- Punjab Government and IIM-Ahmedabad launched a leadership program for ITI and Polytechnic principals to enhance technical education.
- The Skill Education department proposed granting academic credits for skill development programs at ACKVK centres.
- ASER 2024 highlighted improved school enrolment but persistent gaps in reading, math skills, and digital infrastructure in rural India.
- The Economic Survey 2025 emphasized literacy, early education, and medical education costs, with GER targets under NEP 2020 in focus.
