Revamping Skilling Strategy in Rajasthan

Date:
October 28, 2024
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Rajasthan Skill and Livelihood Development Corporation (RSLDC) is the nodal agency for running skilling programmes in the state. The programmes run by the agency are mainly part of central or state schemes. (Annexure1). Since inception back in 2010, RSLDC has trained roughly 5 lakh youth and placed approximately 2 lakhs into jobs. The agency also anchors training programmes for various government departments (Annexure 2) and has trained more than 71,000 youth through such convergences. Over the past few years, RSLDC has received mixed reviews on its performance. For instance, on one hand, it has been recognized as India�s top skilling agency by ASSOCHAM and SKOCH Group while on the other hand it drew flak from Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) in its 2018 report on General and Social Sector for Rajasthan. Main criticism of RSLDC has been on account of its inability to provide skill training in relevant sectors, ensure optimum placements and effective monitoring of training processes (discussed later). It is in this light that key skilling schemes in the state were repackaged and rebranded after incorporating lessons learnt in the past. Amongst other things, improvements focused on better monitoring and assessment of demand. Specifically, in the context of demand assessment, RSLDC has now developed District Skill Development Plan (DSDP) to better match demand and supply. 2 Towards this endeavor, a District Skill Development Committee (DSDC) has been set up in each district which coordinates with enterprises on the ground and industry department of state government (Annexure 3). However, an important question remains i.e. whether the recent steps to reform the working of RSLDC address structural deficiencies? To understand this better, this note attempts to analyze the gaps systematically in ensuing sections. This note also argues a need to subsume all skilling initiatives under one program.