“The Narendra Modi Government will ensure that every young Malayali in Thiruvananthapuram is empowered with future-ready skills,” Union Minister Shri Rajeev Chandrasekhar said during his address at the Mar Ivanios College today.

Union Minister of State for Electronics and IT, Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, and Jal Shakti, Shri Rajeev Chandrasekhar announced that close to 4 lakh Young Indians in Kerala will be skilled in the next three years under Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY) 4.0. The aim of this programme is to focus on future skills, in areas such as Additive Manufacturing (3D Printing), AI – Data Quality Analyst, Drone Manufacturing and Assembly Technician, Electronic Hardware Assembly Operator among others.

The Minister distributed certificates to the students who completed the German Certificate Course designed by National Skill Development Corporation. These nurses hailing from different parts of Kerala have been offered jobs in Germany with a salary package of Rs. 2 lac per month. He also launched a Language proficiency programme designed by The Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship.

While addressing the gathering, the Minister said, “Knowledge is power, but what is even more powerful is knowledge with skills. The Narendra Modi Government is on a mission that, within the next 5 years, young Malayalis in Thiruvananthapuram will no longer be left out without skills. Skills, particularly future skills, have the potential to expand opportunities for young Indians. The FutureSkills programme was devised to provide opportunities to all. As a Malayali, it is disheartening to witness the lack of opportunities in Kerala — the absence of factories, tech hubs, and investments. However, we will ensure that there are opportunities for all, to ensure that there are more skills and newer ways to earn for all.”

Highlighting how Apple has increased its manufacturing a Turing base in India the Minister added “Apple has set up plants in India and is making iPhones for India and the world. Around 1.3 lakh direct jobs have been created. These plants have come up in states like Karnataka, Tamil Nadu. Why not Kerala? Talent is the biggest magnet for investment & Skilling is the passport for prosperity.”

Pointing towards the Industry leaders from IBM and NXP while announcing programme to skill 4 lakh youth in kerala in Future Ready Skills, the Minister remarked “I am confident, soon you will come to Trivandrum as Young Malayalis will show you what talent they bring to bear in fields of cyber security, AI, semiconductor & electronics design, etc”

Shri Hitesh Garg, Vice President and India country manager at NXP and Shri Sandip Patel, Managing Director, IBM India & South Asia were also in attendance.

Shri Hitesh Garg said that, “We have seen in the past how students with Masters and even PhDs never got good opportunities. However, today we have seen how people are getting opportunities through these skilling and training programmes — this is intelligent thinking. This Narendra Modi Government, with Ministers like Rajeev Chandrasekhar who is a technocrat himself, has a strong understanding of the market. He knows where the market is going, he knows where the skill gaps are, he is laying a roadmap for the youth to be future-ready, and the skills that they would need.”

Shri Sandip Patel said, “I have always believed that technology is an enabler and it is an equaliser. It has the power to transform lives and societies in a very meaningful manner. This whole focus on skill development that Rajeev ji and our Hon’ble PM has put together is very critical to India today. Skill will make the youth a lot more capable and with our demographic dividend we can truly make India a net exporter of talent to the world. As IBM we are very committed to Kerala, what we are finding is that the state has tremendous skill potential that we are continuing to grow and build out.”

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