BS EDIT: Skilling Failure

By Business StandardPublished On Sep 24, 2025

A Fragile Institution

NSDC’s recent leadership crisis and financial irregularities expose serious flaws in its design and oversight

Misaligned Beginnings

Conceived as a PPP in 2008, NSDC struggled with the differing priorities of government and private players from the start

Mission Overload

The Skill India Mission expanded NSDC’s role beyond financing, burdening it with large-scale programme execution

Capacity vs. Ambition

With just 200 employees, NSDC cannot effectively oversee thousands of training centres across a country as vast as India

Quality in Question

Patchy placement records and inconsistent training quality raise doubts about the effectiveness of current delivery models

Time to Rebuild

Reforming India’s skilling framework requires narrowing mandates, stronger accountability, and smarter public-private partnerships