While launching Future Skills PRIME - a joint initiative by Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology (MeitY)  & NASSCOM, the Union Minister of State in the Ministry of Electronics and IT, Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, Shri Rajeev Chandrasekhar said that “Skilling should not be seen as entry-level only, but as a continuous dynamic ladder of skilling, upskilling & reskilling. The Industry must forecast the new skills required. The private sector must act as the early warning system- as training, financial and employment stakeholder. As we go up the value chain, the competition will be more intense. The skill intensity must match the competition intensity. This is a serious inflection point for us. The competition & the skilling must increase. The Government is committed to being a partner to the industry for success. But succeed we should, and succeed we must.”

 

 

Conceived as a first-of-its-kind initiative, Future Skills PRIME aims to create an up-skilling /re-skilling ecosystem in 10 emerging technologies, such as artificial intelligence, IOT, blockchain, 3D printing, AR/VR, cyber security, cloud computing etc., to facilitate continuous enhancement of skills of IT professionals in line with their aspirations and aptitude.

The pan-India network of C-DAC & NIELIT Centres is also being leveraged to extend the reach of this programme in smaller towns & remote locations through blended-learning programmes. FutureSkills PRIME is also providing an opportunity for training of Government officials, specially the technical/ scientific cadres, and making them familiar with the nuances of emerging technologies through industry-curated courses.

Prominent industry leaders, Shri Rishad Premji, Chairman, Wipro Ltd., Shri Anant Maheshwari, President, Microsoft India, Shri CP Gurnani, CEO & MD, Tech. Mahindra & Ms. Rekha Menon, Chairperson & Sr. MD, Accenture (India) also attended this event at MeitY. Ms. Debjani Ghosh, President NASSCOM in her welcome address said that “We are envisioning India to emerge as a global leader in technology.  Digital skills are the raw material we need to win in the race and a digital skilling platform backed by the Government & NASSCOM provides the perfect recipe towards positioning India as the global hub for emerging technologies & talent. FutureSkills PRIME is generating new entrants for the world of technology.”

Shri Ajay Sawhney, Secretary, MeitY in his address said that “India has immense skills. The Government & the Industry have worked together to create a national public digital skilling platform with curated competency based pathways along with popular digital fluency courses. Future Skills PRIME is a Team India effort.”

Speaking at the occasion, Shri RishadPremji, Chairman, WIPRO said that “India has become one of the biggest IT destinations for enterprises globally with its pricing competitiveness and quality talent. FutureSkills PRIME is ushering a robust paradigm to develop core competencies in emerging technologies. Willingness of companies to look at alternative talent pools will enable people to pick up courses that are relevant to industry, thereby bridging the digital talent gap”.  Sh. AnantMaheswari, President, Microsoft India indicated that “the skills of the future will look very different from the skills that exist today. To thrive in a digital future, new formats of skilling programs need to be built & delivered at massive scale, so that our youth are not only equipped with digital skills, but we also enable them with critical thinking, collaboration, creative problem solving & responsible decision-making”.  Ms. Rekha Menon, Chairperson, NASSCOM & Sr. MD, Accenture said “I envision FutureSkills PRIME as a one-stop global platform for skilling, up-skilling & re-skilling in emerging technologies. The launch of FutureSkills PRIME is a huge step by the government to derive benefits in the form of a future-ready talent that would facilitate both, the Government & the Industry to innovate at a much faster pace”.  In his address, Sh. CP Gurnani, CEO & MD, Tech Mahindra brought out that “the pandemic has enhanced the possibilities for a more expansive learning approach, leading to democratization of education in India.  Tech organizations in India are transitioning towards location agnostic hiring & hybrid work models. Up-skilling/Re-skilling through Future Skills PRIME would equip candidates with exciting opportunities”

Dr. Jaideep Kumar Mishra, Joint Secretary, MeitY brought out that FutureSkills PRIME seeks to motivate & create value at every step through innovative mechanisms.   A concept of ‘skills passport’ and ‘skills ledger’ that are rather unique have been introduced so that any learning that an aspirant acquires during his re-skilling/ up-skilling journey can be recorded and recognized. 

Ms. Kirti Seth, CEO, IT-ITeS SSC-NASSCOM proposing the vote of thanks said that as the key implementing agency, SSC-NASSCOM is proud to be a part of this initiative. She further said that the re-skilling/ up-skilling incentive for B2C beneficiary by the government is a step in the right direction to enable a larger learner ecosystem.

 

RKJ/M

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