ArdorComm Media Group

Dr. M. Jayaprakasan
Dr. M. Jayaprakasan

Dr. M. Jayaprakasan (I.S.D.S), CEO, Naan Mudhalvan Skill Initiative, TNSDC, Govt. of India, Highlights the Importance of Skill Development for Students

“Skilling will be part of their education so it will be a pre-placement opportunity to be given to the students so that they should be industry ready while coming out, that’s the ultimate aim,” says Dr. M. Jayaprakasan (I.S.D.S), CEO, Naan Mudhalvan Skill Initiative, TNSDC, Govt. of India in an interview with Chandan Anand, CEO & Group Editor, ArdorComm Media Group at the ‘New Normal – Education Leadership Summit & Awards 2023’ #ELSAChennai #ELSATamilNadu

We would like to understand an initiative under your leadership which has been taken by the Tamil Nadu Skill Development Corporation.

Tamil Nadu Skill Development Corporation first started in the country in 2009. We have several initiatives aimed at skill development. The first one is a short-term training program with a job linkage. The second one is the recognition of prior learning, where we assess and certify individuals who already have the required skills. The third one is the promotion of traditional craft, clusters and traditional jobs with the support scheme called “SANKALP,” which stands for Skill and Knowledge Acquisition for Livelihood Promotion. Lastly, our mission project called “Naan Mudhalvan” focuses on Skilling for all, where students gain skills alongside their education to be industry-ready upon completion. So, Skilling will be part of their education so it will be a pre-placement opportunity to be given to the students so that they should be industry ready while coming out that’s the ultimate aim. Annually, our target is to skill 10 lakhs (1 million) people, and within a year, we have already crossed 13 lakhs (1.3 million). We are expanding to ITIs (Industrial Training Institutes) and polytechnics soon and plan to extend to schools as well.

Do you also partner with EdTech companies or how does that collaboration happen which ultimately is for the benefit of academia?

When it comes to involving Skilling, we need industrial expertise since our faculties are yet to be trained on the new technologies. Faculty development plays a key role, and we involve industries that require the specific skills. For example, Cisco offers CCNA training, and Autodesk offers manufacturing software. We engage these industry partners and training partners at the ground level to offer training to our faculty and students. We also collaborate with companies like Siemens, Microsoft, and others for English communication and assessment. We aim to interact with global partners to provide recognition and confidence to our students. These collaborations and training programs are provided at no cost, as the government invests in faculty training and provides funding to industries. Ultimately, we want to transform Tamil Nadu into the skill capital of India. We not only focus on skilling but also on the outcome, which is employment. Under the Naan Mudhalvan scheme, we enable placements for students who have undergone training. We have created a skill registry where industries can search for trained candidates. The registry allows industries to access profiles of candidates based on district, sector, college, and specific skills. This way, industries can easily recruit suitable candidates. We also facilitate industry-college interactions and assist industries in recruitment, bridging the gap between industry and academia.

You witnessed this event, we have an amalgamation of corporate, EdTech companies, academia as well as the Government. How does such a forum help the community at large?

Such a forum enables interaction, experience sharing, knowledge exchange, and networking among various sectors, including corporates, edtech companies, academia, and the government. It allows each participant to learn from one another and stay informed about developments in different sectors. Networking plays a significant role as it provides opportunities for collaboration and upskilling. These types of events are wonderful opportunities to explore, learn, and upskill ourselves.

ArdorComm Media is just a 20-month-old media startup. How was your experience, and what message would you like to give to ArdorComm Media?

Thank you so much for arranging this wonderful event, connecting educationalists, industries, and academicians in a single platform where everyone can share their experiences. We would like to work together with the Tamil Nadu Skill Development Corporation and explore future collaborations through these type of programs in future to create awareness among students, industries, institutions, and education.

 

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