Building skill capacity is key to enhance productivity and drive the economy ahead: Dharmendra Pradhan

New Delhi, 12 August (H.S): Addressing the CII?s virtual special plenary session on ?Job Creation & Entrepreneurship ? Way Ahead for Livelihood Generation?, union Education and Skill Development Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said that under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the economy is growing at a rapid pace and the future of India is looking very promising. He said that building skill capacity is a key to enhance productivity and drive the economy ahead.

Pradhan highlighted that continuous efforts are being made to equip our youth with the 21st Century Skills. He said that as envisioned in the National Education Policy (NEP) -2020, the Government is working to create greater synergy between education and skills for making a future-ready work force. NEP will contribute in creating a robust education ecosystem and eventually facilitating economic growth, he added.

The Minister informed that Educational institutions and skill development centers have been affected during the pandemic but Government ensured continuity of education by developing digital content at a large scale. He further informed that in the near future every village will be connected with high-speed Internet and these mass-scale digitization efforts are creating new education, skilling, and entrepreneurial ecosystems.

Pradhan stressed that teachers play an important role in building society and technology is reshaping society. With the greater advent of technology and changing society, our teachers need to be re-skilled and up-skilled, he added.

He urged that as we celebrate ?Azaadi ka Amrut Mahotsav?, we must work together to make our youth future-ready who will lead India towards the goal of an Aatmanirbhar Bharat. He stated that with this goal, India is going to witness rapid economic growth and will become the engine of global growth. The Minister called upon the industry to contribute to this mission.

Ajay Shriram, Chairman and Senior MD, DCM Shriram Ltd; Chandrajit Banerjee, Director General, CII; Dr. Gayathri Vasudevan, Pratham Education Foundation and other industry experts attended the session.