Introduction
Persistent skill gap has always been a concern with policymakers and corporations in India as India, endeavours to ādevelop workers who are flexible, adaptable, and adept in behavioural, interpersonal and inter-functional skillsā suitable for the new economy (especially the service sector) (Maitra and Maitra 2015, 318; Majumdar 2016; Mehrotra 2012). As various reports indicate, youth un/underemployment continues to be a critical issue in India coupled with a rise in informal and vulnerable occupations in both manufacturing and the service sectors that undermines the prospects of reducing working poverty (ILO 2018; Mitra and Verick 2013). ILO (2018) data shows that out of the 1.4 billion people estimated to be in vulnerable employment globally this year, 394 million or more than a quarter will be in India alone. Skill training and education are considered important means to address such issues of vulnerability and working poverty.
According to the recent Human Development Report (2016) by UNDP, average human development has improved globally; yet marginalized sections continue to suffer basic forms of deprivation. Unemployment and deepening socio-economic inequalities are two of the most fundamental forms of such deprivation (Jahan 2016). Learning and training are considered efficacious strategies for addressing and mitigating the problems of inequality as underscored by many policymakers and academics. Accordingly, in the last few years several policy documents have recurrently emphasized the need for the workers to continue to learn and get trained in cognitive as well as interpersonal skills to remain competitive in the global labour market.
This chapter seeks to understand the history of industrial development in India through the state-led institutional arrangement for skill-training . As a late industrializing state, institutionalized skill training for the creation of a stable and disciplined work force in India was seen as critically important to transform the rural agricultural economy of the country into a modern industrialized state. As part of the second Five Year Plan (1956ā1961) that outlined the major governmental policy on industrial development in India, skill training was seen as critical to transform the vast rural agricultural workforce into a modern and disciplined labour force with technological proficiency. Employment generation and the need for a stable workforce in the emerging industrial landscape of India made skill training a vital policy imperative of the postcolonial Indian state. Even in the contemporary period, the emphasis on the industrial manufacturing jobs through the āMake in Indiaā programme is seen as a cornerstone of developing industrialization in the present context.
Industrial training establishments are considered crucial institutions for providing skill training at the entry and intermediate levels and assumed to facilitate successful employment and careers to young trainees. The role played by the state in the establishment of institutions for skill training such as the Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) were seen as a crucial function of the state in reproducing labour (through its education and training) in order to provide employment, attract private capital investments and facilitate the creation of a modern work force. Yet, relatively little historical work exists in Indian labour studies that specifically explores skill training as a crucial and significant aspect of the larger narrative of industrial development in India. The focus of this chapter on the state-led ITIs is especially important, as the ITIs have continued to remain as the main training institutes for youth populations seeking to enter the industrial sector for most of the postcolonial period in India.
However, as we demonstrate in this chapter, by examining the role of ITI in skill training and its interaction with employment, the scope for labour market integration of young ITI graduates are quite slim. Lack of effectively coordinated skill training coupled with mismatch in employability skills and uneven and concentrated industrial growth are creating a pool of atypical, non-standard, cheap workers having part-time employment and more homeworking, casual and contract jobs.
Skill Training Policy in India: Some Recent Initiatives
As Nayana Tara and Sanath Kumar (2016) point out, the magnitude of skilling India is huge given that 12.8 million annually enter the labour market for the first time, 72.88 million are employed in the organized sector while 387.34 million work in the unorganized sector. Furthermore, a growing population also poses barriers to effective skill training. In addition, 298.25 million of existing farm and nonfarm sector workforce will need to be skilled, reskilled and upskilled (Government of India 2015). Therefore, various initiatives have been undertaken by the government of India to mainstream skill training, especially for the economically marginalized youth.
Towards addressing this problem, āCoordinated Action on Skill Developmentā was proposed by the Planning Commission and approved by the Cabinet in 2008, for achieving the 11th Plan objective of inclusive growth and development by creating a pool of skilled workforce that would meet the employment requirement across various sectors of the national economy (Planning Commission 2008). It is estimated that building on this policy of āCoordinated Action on Skills Developmentā, as of 2012 the Government of India has facilitated the setting up of more than 9000 ITIs , 3500 polytechnics, in addition to the 8000 engineering/other degree institutions, to provide training at different levels of skill.1
This initiative was complemented by the adoption of the National Skills Development Policy in early 2009. India has also partnered with international agencies such as International Labour Organisation (ILO) and Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) in addressing skill training issues and to develop skill training strategies for improved productivity, employment growth and development. In 2010 and 2011, OECD under its āSkills and Employment Strategies in Southeast Asia Initiativeā (ESSSA) held two meetings in Tokyo and Shanghai to discuss how to integrate skill development strategies in Asian countries. India, was among the 15 Asian countries that participated in the meetings to discuss how to build a system for skill training and align the links between training and industry needs.2
Recently in 2015, the commitment to skill development was renewed through the establishment of the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE). In 2015 the Skill India mission was also launched with a target of training over 400 million people by 2022.3 Skill India mission was envisaged as a demand-driven, skill training initiative, in particular, targeting skilling of young people who lack formal certification, such as the weaker and disadvantaged sections of the society (Government of India 2015). It is being promoted with the tagline, āKaushal Bharat, Kushal Bharatā (skilling Indians will result in a happy and prosperous nation). In addition, it has been planned to assess and certify 10 lakh youth for the skills that they already possess through an initiative known as āRecognition of Prior Learningā (RPL).4
In the context of this policy emphasis on skilling, ITIs and the Industrial Training Centres (ITCs) have emerged as significant constituents of the current skill ecosystem in India, and they play a key role in providing formal skill training to young people, especially from the marginalized sections. ITCs are institutions funded and managed by private organizations such as NGOs. State-funded ITIs started operating in the 1950s to primarily train young school leavers. As of 2018, there are a total of 11,964 (state-funded 2284 and privately owned 9680) ITIs across the country. Training is imparted in 126 trades (73 in engineering, 48 in non-engineering and 5 exclusively for visually impaired) of duration 1ā2 years.5 The supply driven training curriculum is standardized and designed by the National Council for Vocational Training (NCVT) and implemented at each ITI under the supervision of the State Council for Vocational Training (SCVT). Usually, 70% of the training is practice-oriented while the rest is theory based, although much of the practical training is imparted within the ITIs. There is 30% reservation for women within ITIs although womenās enrolment is still low because of various sociocultural norms and responsibilities (Mehrotra and Mehrotra 2018). Successful trainees are awarded a National Trade Certificate, nationally and internationally recognized under the aegis of NCVT.6 As one of the major training institutes, ITIs have a high impact on the formal vocational education in India (Pilz 2016). ITIs are considered crucial institutions for providing skill training at the intermediate levels and assumed to facilitate smooth pathways to employment and successful careers in manufacturing, construction and the service sector to young trainees.
Thus, in the following sections, through a combination of conceptual insights drawn from Indian labour historiography and ethnographic participant research we explore the historical and ideological contestations over the meaning, nature and scope of industrial skill training in state-sponsored ITIs in their attempts to create a disciplined, committed, yet cheap labour force in India.
Selection of Research Methods and Field-Sites
This chapter draws on conceptual insights from Indian labour history to address the question of historical and ideological shifts in the structure and pedagogic principles of the ITIs. In addition to the theoretical inpu...