COVID-19 propels growth of ed-tech, upGrad, BYJU's see strong rise in learner base

COVID-19 has spelt disaster for many sectors but one segment witnessing strong growth is ed-tech that has seen individuals - both school students and professionals - taking up online courses to study and enhance their skills amid the ongoing lockdown.

BYJU'S, which is backed by investors like Tiger Global, has witnessed a 150 per cent increase in the number of new students, with over six million new students joining the app in the month of March.

The company has recently introduced free 'Live Classes' on its platform to support students in their learning journeys.

Similarly, upGrad - which offers online programmes for working professionals - has on boarded 4,000 learners in March, and now aims to double this to 8,000 in April.

The ongoing economic slowdown has made working professionals somewhat skeptical of the job environment in 2020, and they are therefore looking at upgrading their skills and staying ahead in the professional spheres.

Swathi Karanth, a learner from Bengaluru who enrolled on upGrad, said his concern when the lockdown was announced was whether he will have a job in the next three months.

"I was told most companies would really tighten their belt over the next six months and only the better performers will survive," he added.

The government, on March 24, had announced a complete lockdown in the country for 21 days to contain the spread of the coronavirus infection.

While schools are shut, many of them have started conducting online sessions to ensure students do not get impacted.

Similarly, many professionals have been asked to work from home to ensure business continuity. This also presents a growth opportunity for ed-tech platforms that can offer short-term courses to these professionals to help them enhance their skills.

According to Debjani Ghosh, president of Nasscom, coronavirus has thrown up "exceptional challenges" across the world and industries.

"While we continue to fight these challenges as a nation, amidst lockdown and remote working scenarios, it is extremely important that we continue harnessing our skill sets on emerging technologies to become future ready...we would encourage all stakeholders to use this opportunity of working from home to upskill themselves in the skills of the future," she added.

The industry body has partnered Electronics and IT Ministry to launch an on-demand courseware on artificial intelligence.

Similarly, TCS iON, a strategic unit of India's largest IT services firm Tata Consultancy Services, has announced a free, 15-day self-paced digital certification programme that has been specially designed for college students/working professionals to enhance their career skills by helping them effectively utilise the time at hand during this period of lockdown.