MSDE Concludes Week-long Kaushal Manthan to Shape Skilling Roadmap for 2026

NEW DELHI:
Jayant Chaudhary, Minister of State (I/C) for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship and Minister of State for Education, Government of India, chaired the concluding session of the week-long (23rd December 2025-31st December 2025) Kaushal Manthan, bringing together senior officials across divisions, institutions, and key stakeholders from MSDE.

The objective of the discussions held over a period of one week was to identify priority reforms and initiatives, aligned with national priorities. Deliberations focused on building a robust, responsive, and outcome-oriented skilling ecosystem. The session culminated in the firming up of Skill Resolutions for 2026, which will guide policy action and programme implementation in the coming year.

Emphasis was placed on the next phase of reforms, with a sharper focus on outcomes, stronger convergence with State Governments and industry, and improved monitoring of training quality, assessments, and certifications.

A key theme of the discussions was the need to strengthen institutional mechanisms while simplifying systems. Proposed directions include outcome-based grading mechanisms for ITIs to drive quality improvement, delegation of powers to regional and institutional levels to enable ease of doing business. The reorganization and strengthening of Sector Skill Councils (SSCs) was also discussed, alongwith regular review of SSCs and assignment of KPIs. The deliberations highlighted the need for continuous curriculum upgradation in line with technological change and industry demand.

Modernising curriculum and, strengthening industry co-creation, and ensuring flexibility and adaptability in training design were identified as key enablers for building a resilient skilling ecosystem.

Creation of clear and seamless pathways across skill levels was emphasized upon; from school to post-school, for dropouts, working professionals, and lifelong learners supported by credit frameworks and mobility across programmes.

During the recently held CS Conference MSDE had committed to establishing a National Federated Skill and Workforce Registry, operationalising a National Trainer Framework, repositioning apprenticeships as the primary school-to-work pathway, and integrating MSMEs into national skilling and apprenticeship frameworks in a time-bound manner.

The Kaushal Manthan reaffirmed the Ministry’s commitment to regular and structured consultations with State Governments, deeper and continuous industry engagement, strengthened inter-ministerial and institutional convergence

These common levers are expected to underpin the implementation of reforms and ensure alignment across stakeholders.