Why in the News?

• NITI Aayog's report 'Reimagining Skilling for Viksit Bharat@2047' has found that an estimated 8.7 crore Indians aged 15 to 29 were neither studying, working nor undergoing training, prompting recommendations to overhaul India's skilling approach.

What’s in Today’s Article?

• NITI Aayog Report (Key Findings, Core Problem, Cost Factor, Skilling in Schools, Reforming Higher Education, Spending vs Outcomes, etc.)

Understanding NEET Youth

• The report identifies this group as NEET youth, those not in education, employment or training, including the unemployed.
• The figure of 8.7 crore is based on data from the 78th round of the National Sample Survey, conducted in 2021.
• The number matters because it represents young people who are not making a direct transition from education to either employment or skill development.
• For a country counting on its demographic advantage, this represents a substantial loss of productive potential.
• The report divides India's workforce and learners into five broad groups:
  • Those in schooling, those in tertiary education, those in formal and informal work, NEET youth, and women.
• Each group faces different constraints and therefore requires different interventions.

The Core Problem: Degrees Without Jobs

• The most striking finding is the weak link between formal education and employment.
• Only 8.25% of graduates are employed in roles that match their qualifications.
• This means the vast majority of degree holders are either working in unrelated fields or unable to find suitable work at all.
• The report attributes this to limited practical exposure and insufficient industry-aligned training, which continues to affect employability even among formally educated young people.
• A degree, in other words, does not automatically translate into employability.

Why Cost Becomes a Barrier?

• For students from low-income households, adding a paid skilling course on top of college fees and private tuition is often unaffordable.
• This leaves little room to invest in additional training alongside a conventional degree.
• The consequences follow two paths. Some graduates take up formal employment simply to secure an income and support their families, accepting whatever provides stability even when it is low-paying.
• Others struggle to make the transition into work at all and eventually become NEET.
• The report notes that NEET youth face a particular financial difficulty. They have no income while having already spent on their earlier education, what the report describes as the sunk cost of prior education.
• This makes paid skilling especially difficult to access precisely for those who need it most.

Bringing Skilling Into Schools

• NITI Aayog's central recommendation is to move skilling into the school system rather than treating it as an option after formal education is complete.
• It has proposed universal General Employability and Entrepreneurship Skills from Class 6 to Class 12, along with structured vocational pathways called Kaushal Tracks from Class 9.
• These tracks would offer deeper vocational specialisation based on local and national demand.
• The report notes that fewer than one in 12 secondary schools currently offer vocational subjects, despite both the National Education Policy 2020 and the National Curriculum Framework providing for greater integration of vocational education and employability skills from Class 6.
• For Classes 10 and 12, the report suggests including vocational subjects in the board subject scheme with equal weightage, and allowing state boards to accept the revised scheme for certification.
• It also proposes continuing General Employability and Entrepreneurship Skills as a separate subject in Classes 11 and 12.

Reforming Higher Education

• The recommendations extend well beyond schools.
• For higher education, the report calls for a shift away from generic degrees towards applied, industry-aligned specialisations. It advocates greater use of apprenticeships and work-integrated degree and diploma programmes.
• It also proposes flexible, modular and earn-while-you-learn options, recognising that many students cannot afford to study full-time without an income.

The Apprenticeship Gap

• Apprenticeships have been identified as another missing link between education and employment.
• Schemes such as the National Apprenticeship Promotion Scheme and the National Apprenticeship Training Scheme have expanded access. However, the report notes that participation remains uneven and opportunities are fragmented across sectors and regions.
• To address this, it suggests expanding apprenticeship opportunities through incentives for MSMEs and creating a unified platform so that credible opportunities are easier for young people to find.

Focusing on Future Sectors

• The report calls for greater attention to sectors expected to generate demand, including green industries and electric vehicles, while also providing reskilling for workers in declining occupations.
• A key shift it proposes is in how success is measured. Training should increasingly be linked to measurable employment outcomes rather than participation numbers alone.

Spending Versus Outcomes

• The scale of India's skilling effort is already substantial. More than 7.67 crore people have been trained since 2014-15, and the Union Budget for 2025-26 allocated Rs. 34,000 crore towards skilling-related expenditure across multiple Central ministries.
• Despite this, the report observes that outcomes remain uneven. This suggests that increasing spending and training numbers alone may not be enough without stronger links between education, skills, and actual employment.

What Different Groups Need?

• The report tailors its recommendations to the constraints each group faces.
• For NEET youth and women, it emphasises affordable or subsidised training options backed by dedicated financial support, since financial constraints bind most tightly here.
• It also stresses the importance of enabling people to learn while earning.
• For the existing workforce and NEET youth, the emphasis shifts towards mid-career reskilling, self-employment pathways, and learning options aligned to local demand and emerging sectors.