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GDP groove despite repeated promis- gets. Moreover, private industry and view academic and skills development
es in BJP election manifestos to raise it business need to do more to engage education in separate compartments
to 6 percent of GDP (as recommended with schools, colleges and universi- as the Union Budget 2024-25 does, is
by the Kothari Commission way back ties, starting from getting involved ill-advised. Therefore to adequately
in 1967). Consequently, the number of in curriculum-setting to providing skill the world’s largest youth popula-
VET institutes in India at 15,000 has practical internships and apprentice- tion, the BJP/NDA 3.0 and succeed-
remained static cf. 500,000 in China. ships. NEP 2020 recommends a na- ing governments have no option but
Therefore even official skills devel- tional mindset change through full to ideate resource mobilisation and
opment initiatives are heavily depen- integration of vocational training into deployment strategies to more than
dent upon collaboration and partner- mainstream education. This breaking double the national expenditure for
ships with for-profit private sector down of barriers between vocational public education from the current 2.7
enterprises. There is minimal aware- and academic education is impera- percent of GDP to 7 percent. Failing
ness in government that skilling is the tive for India achieving its $30 trillion this, it’s panicky initiatives to quickly
“super-structure” built on the founda- economy and Viksit Bharat targets by skill 41 million youth in the next five
tion of strong primary-secondary edu- 2047,” says Neeti Sharma of Team- years are likely to have little impact.
cation (see Special Report p.68). Lease Skills University. Over seven decades ago, Mahatma
“India is moving in the right direc- Although the BJP/NDA 3.0 govern- Gandhi, who masterminded India’s
tion in terms of government policies ment’s belated awareness — testified freedom from foreign rule, presciently
and schemes to skill and upskill its by several youth skilling initiatives observed that for children to mature
youth and workforce. However im- contained in Union Budget 2024-25 into good productive citizens, they
plementation of new initiatives is too — is in the right direction, it’s im- should be simultaneously provided
slow. Government needs to press the portant to stress that robust founda- education of the head, heart and
implementation pedal and invest in tional and primary-secondary public hands. Like much else, this advice was
creating a robust grassroots primary learning is a necessary precondition ignored. The outcome is a low produc-
tivity nation, a laggard in the global
and vocational education system to of delivering acceptable quality skills development race.
achieve its ambitious skilling tar- education for the country’s youth. To

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