Skills policy being revised to make it result-oriented: Minister

The government is well into the process of revising the National Policy on Skill Development, 2009, to make it more result-oriented, Skill Development Minister Sarbananda Sonowal said here Wednesday, while inviting Germany's involvement in the process.

"The revised policy will also endeavour to establish the international equivalent of Indian framework on skill development with the European framework. This will facilitate mobility of workforce," Sonowal said addressing a conference on skill development organised by the union labour ministry and the German embassy here.

Skill development is a focus area of the National Democratic Alliance government with Prime Minister Narendra Modi creating a new ministry to handle the subject, the minister said.

Modi had in his Independence Day speech announced the "Make in India" campaign inviting companies across the world to make their products in India and create jobs in the labour-intensive manufacturing sectors.

The policy is being revised so that schemes of different ministries and portions of the Rs.10,000 crore earmarked to encourage entrepreneurship are routed through the newly-formed skill development and entrepreneurship ministry.

Moreover, the new policy aims to ensure that the country's youth also fulfil the skilled manpower demand abroad, by benchmarking the training programmes to international standards.

Germany is a vital partner in carrying forward the skilling drive and creating a pool of skilled workforce in the country, Sonowal said.

Speaking on the occasion, German ambassador Michael Steiner said Indo-German cooperation in the area had got a fresh impetus following a phone conversation between German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Prime Minister Narendra Modi where it was emphasised that both countries were natural partners in the field of vocational education and training.