Why ITIs Need Urgent Reinvention

The recently approved national programme to upgrade 1,000 Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs), with funding support from the Asian Development Bank and the World Bank, creates an unprecedented opportunity for a brand makeover. Repositioning ITIs can reshape public perception and deliver a cascading impact on the skilling ecosystem. ITIs must no longer be seen as a fallback option but as a first-choice pathway to modern job roles. Yet unless placement pipelines are strengthened, more skilled youth will paradoxically remain unemployed.

With Prime Minister Narendra Modi announcing the Pradhan Mantri Rozgar Yojana in his 2025 Independence Day speech, there is urgency to establish quality benchmarks, build trust, and enhance the discoverability of ITI-trained youth. Today, many ITI graduates are hired on third-party payrolls, with nearly 90% losing their jobs within the first year. The NSDC’s Skill India Digital Hub (SIDH) could be developed into a National Skills Grid, serving as a unified ecosystem for job-matching, certification, and tracking employment outcomes.

Low aspirational value is reflected in outdated infrastructure, obsolete equipment, under-utilised capacity (14.5 lakh enrolments across 15,000 ITIs), and poor female participation (14%). Rewriting the ITI narrative requires identifying these gaps while investing in infrastructure. A strong media campaign linking ITIs to national missions—Make in India, Digital India, Skill India International—alongside showcasing alumni journeys, startup successes, and global placements, will also be essential.

Aligning skilling, reskilling, and upskilling with local industry demand is critical. Employers report 63% of vacancies are “hard-to-fill,” while nearly 39% of existing skills may become obsolete by 2030 (World Economic Forum). This requires a long-term model of industry–academia cooperation to build a workforce not only skilled but also continuously developed in partnership with industry.

The `60,000 crore upgrade plan must also address gender. Initiatives like NAVYA—a collaboration between the Ministry of Women and Child Development and the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship—already expose adolescent girls to future-ready skills and entrepreneurial opportunities such as drone-based “agripreneurs.” Expanding women-only ITIs in technical trades beyond traditional crafts, with transport stipends, hostel facilities, and safety measures, could significantly boost female participation.

India must skill, upskill, and reskill 400 million people and generate 8 million non-farm jobs annually. Yet only 5% of the workforce has formal vocational training, compared to 60% in South Korea. Around 20% of India’s workforce is engaged in green jobs, but fewer than 1% hold relevant certifications. In electronics and smart manufacturing, Production Linked Incentive (PLI) schemes demand CNC and robotics technicians, but only 4.4% of workers are formally skilled. Expanding dual apprenticeships from 0.6 million to 5–10 million annually could help bridge this gap. In emerging technologies, 67% of employers report difficulty hiring talent in advanced digital and AI fields, even though 50% of graduates are employable but underexposed. By 2030, India will need to upskill 70 million workers in data, cloud, and cybersecurity. The growing healthcare industry highlights the need for caregivers and lab technicians; yet fewer than 2% of NSQF certifications are in this sector. An additional one million caregivers will be required by 2030.

To raise manufacturing’s GDP share to 25%, India must create over 100 million additional jobs and empower urban poor and rural migrants with inclusive skill sets. State Skill Councils must be strengthened as empowered bodies coordinating with industry, reviewing curricula, and forging agreements with local clusters and MSMEs for job-aligned skilling models.

Current shortcomings include inadequate practical training, limited on-the-job exposure, 30–40% instructor vacancies (especially in robotics and mechatronics), weak industry linkages, and socio-economic exclusions. India ranks only 3/7 on “soft and transversal skills” in the WEF index, underscoring the need for structured modules in critical thinking, communication, and workplace ethics. Training must go beyond technical know- how to cover functional literacy—interpreting safety instructions, machine manuals, muster rolls, job sheets, and leave applications. Form must follow function. Modern infrastructure and revamped curricula in 1,000 ITIs can produce an industry-ready workforce, reduce dependency on foreign expertise, and promote self-reliance. India must move beyond entry-level NSQF levels 3–4 to advanced levels 7–10, particularly in precision manufacturing, AI, EV maintenance, automation, and digital economy skills. Some ITIs could even evolve into skill parks—not just training centres, but incubators of innovation and local economic vitality.

Industry engagement is central to this vision. Live capstone projects, faculty immersion, adjunct faculty roles for professionals (such as the L&T Skill Trainers Academy in Maharashtra), and gig-economy tie-ups can strengthen employability. District Skill Committees can partner with local industries for customised training, as seen in Gujarat’s collaboration with the diamond industry or Haryana’s partnerships with Hero and JBM. Cross-border apprenticeships facilitated by NSDC and Skill India International—with Japan (elderly care), Germany (precision manufacturing), and Canada (automated welding)—will further enhance employability, language proficiency, and cultural adaptability.

#IndiaMonitorEditorial I Charu Malhotra says Modi government's ₹60,000- crore ITI upgrade will create a new engine of growth for a resurgent India.

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