Question : Skill Development to IT Professionals

(a) whether it is a fact that most of the IT professionals do not have adequate skills to work in the fields of Artificial Intelligence, Internet of Things, Big Data Analytics, etc.;

(b) if so, the steps being taken by the Government to upgrade their skills;

(c) whether the Government is planning to include these subjects as part of College Curriculum and if not, the reasons therefor; and

(d) whether the Government is planning to open training facilities in these
new subjects and if so, the details of the training centres being planned in Odisha and other States in the current year?

(a) to (b) The IT-BPM (Information Technology and Business Process Management) Industry in India employs ~ 4.5 million people. As per the reports available in the market, about 30% of the existing workforce would require re-skilling/ upskilling to stay relevant and about 50-60% of the workforce would require re-skilling/ upskilling on continual basis in emerging technologies to retain the edge that India has in the IT sector due to growing automation, emergence of disruptive as well as new technologies, etc.

To align the IT industry of India with the dynamic world market, NASSCOM - a Sector Skill Council under aegis of Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) has launched FutureSkills platform on 19.02.2018. The programme aims to re-skill 2 million professionals and potential employees & students in the industry over a period of 5 years. FutureSkills digital platform is providing a space where a learner can access content on all the skills of the future. A learner can seamlessly access free and paid content, assessments, virtual labs and get certified on the skills of their choice.

FutureSkills focuses on 155+ skills spanning across 70+ job roles on 10 emerging technologies namely Artificial Intelligence, Blockchain, Big Data Analytics, Cloud Computing, Cyber Security, Internet of Things, Mobile Tech, Robotic Process Automation, Virtual Reality & 3D Printing. As on date, FutureSkills has offered training to approximately 6 lakh candidates.

Further, to reskill and upskill IT-professionals to be adept with the emerging technologies National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) under the aegis of MSDE has established ‘Future of Work’ initiative. In association with IT-ITeS Sector Skill Council (NASSCOM), NSDC has designed and developed Qualification Packs – National Occupational Standards across 9 emerging technologies such as Cyber Security, Artificial Intelligence, Big Data Analytics, Cloud Computing, Block Chain, Robotic Process Automation, Internet of Things, Virtual Reality, and Social & Mobile Application. Further, MSDE is incentivizing training providers to take up these courses for training under the Skill Development Mission.

In the areas of long term training, under the Craftsman Training Scheme at Industrial Training Institutes, new courses were introduced in 2018, such as Smart Agriculture (Internet of Things), Smart Healthcare (Internet of Things), Smart City (Internet of Things), Remotely Piloted Aircraft, etc.

(c) and (d) Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship presently has no such plan to include these courses in college curriculum and establish training centers.