Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship and Minister of State for Education Shri Jayant Chaudhary chaired the First General Body Meeting of the National Council for Vocational Education and Training (NCVET) today at Kaushal Bhawan, New Delhi. During the meeting Shri Jayant Chaudhary said “India’s skilling ecosystem is undergoing a paradigm shift—from fragmented  systems to a unified, outcome-oriented framework aligned with education, industry, and future technologies. NCVET is playing a significant role in making this transformation credible, transparent, and learner-centric,”.

Addressing the meeting, Shri Jayant Chaudhary emphasized that the integration of skilling with mainstream schooling and higher education, enabled through the National Credit Framework and other initiatives of NCVET are making skilling aspirational and ensuring seamless horizontal and vertical mobility for learners across the education ecosystem.

The General Body was apprised of the institutional progress made by NCVET since its operationalisation on 1 August 2020. As the apex national regulator for Skilling, NCVET has successfully subsumed the functions of the erstwhile National Skill Development Agency (NSDA) and National Council for Vocational Training (NCVT), thereby consolidating India’s previously fragmented skilling regulatory architecture. At present, NCVET regulates 161 Awarding Bodies and 68 Assessment Agencies across the country.

A key highlight of the meeting was the review of the Revised Guidelines for Recognition and Regulation of Awarding Bodies and Assessment Agencies (2025). The guidelines are aligned with NEP 2020, the National Credit Framework (NCrF), and the revised NSQF 2023, with a strong focus on learning outcomes, technology-enabled assessments, and evidence-based monitoring.

The Minister lauded the launch of KaushalVerse, NCVET’s unified Digital Enterprise Portal, which automates core regulatory functions including recognition, qualification management, monitoring, and grievance redressal. KaushalVerse is envisioned as the  digital backbone of India’s skilling regulatory ecosystem, enhancing transparency, efficiency, and ease of compliance.

The General Body deliberated on several strategic national initiatives, including:

- SOAR (Skilling for AI Readiness): A flagship initiative aimed at democratizing AI learning, which has already recorded over 1.74 lakh enrolments.

- Project Punah Sthapan: An innovative programme facilitating the transition of Defence personnel to the civil workforce, with 20 Tri-Services institutions recognised as Dual Awarding Bodies.

- Semiconductor Workforce Strategy (2025): A comprehensive roadmap identifying skilling requirements across the semiconductor value chain, supporting India’s ambition to emerge as a global electronics manufacturing hub.

Reaffirming the Government’s commitment to inclusive growth, the General Body ratified the recognition of Persons with Disabilities (PwD) as a separate sector in the National Qualification Register (NQR). To date, over 221 PwD-specific qualifications have been approved.

The meeting also discussed forward-looking frameworks aimed at expanding the scope of skilling, including:

- Sports as a Skill: Integrating the sports ecosystem within the national skilling architecture.

- Language as a Skill: Establishing equivalency pathways for languages such as English, Japanese, and German to enhance international workforce mobility.

- Geriatric Care: Developing a national strategy to build a skilled workforce for India’s rapidly growing elderly population.

In a significant move, the General Body approved the proposal to establish a dedicated Research Division within NCVET. The division will function as a think tank to undertake research on labour market trends, qualification relevance, system performance, and policy innovation.

The high-level meeting was attended by Smt. Debashree Mukherjee, Secretary, MSDE and  Chairperson, NCVET, and Prof. (Dr.) Ashok Kumar Gaba, Executive Member, NCVET, Dr. Suhas Deshmukh, Member Secretary and Director, NCVET and  Shri Anil Kumar T.K., Additional Secretary, Ministry of Rural Development. Senior State Government representation included Ms. Manisha Verma, Additional Chief Secretary, Skill, Employment, Entrepreneurship and Innovation Department, Government of Maharashtra; Ms. Tashi Cho Cho, Secretary, Skill Development, Government of Sikkim and Mr. Pulkit Khare, Mission Director, Uttar Pradesh Skill Development Mission.

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