Skill corporation dumps ‘inept’ quality watchdog
Following large-scale complaints of “inefficient and inept” inspection of its training centres being run under Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY) scheme, the National Skill Development Corporation has stopped engaging the quality control watchdog, Quality Council of India.
NSDC has also wrested control of its Skill Management and AccReditation of Training Centres (SMART) portal from QCI.
Inspection of the skill centres is the first step towards granting accreditation and affiliation to them. Accreditation and affiliation are awarded by the National Council on Vocational Training (NCVT) on the basis of Quality Council of India’s (QCI) inspection report.
Rajiv Pratap Rudy, the minister of state (independent charge) skill development and entrepreneurship, said on the sidelines of an event that the NSDC has done away with the help of QCI following complaints.
“Following complaints of inept and inefficient inspection of skill training centres, we have decided not to take help of QCI anymore. Some of the substandard centres were given good marking while good ones were ticked off. We took this decision after we found a large number of anomalies in their inspection process,” the minister said.
According to the NSDC officials the pact with QCI was for the inspection of its centres till the period 2016-2020.
The NSDC has, instead, decided to rope in private agencies of global repute to do the job for it.
Officials admitted that the QCI inspected about 12,000 centres across India till July 28 and no work was given to it by the NSDC in August. They also said they have handed over the control of SMART back to NSDC.
According to Manish Kumar, CEO, NSDC, the control and management of the SMART portal on which the training centres get registered with NSDC for inspection, accreditation and distribution of targets to them, has been taken away from QCI.
QCI officials, however, refused to accept inapt inspection allegations and said that the entire system worked on the norms provided by the Sector Skill Councils and NSDC and QCI has no control over the norms they specify.
NSDC DECIDED TO DO AWAY WITH THE HELP OF QUALITY COUNCIL OF INDIA AFTER PLAINTS OF INEFFICIENT INSPECTION