Skill ministry plans to train 300,000 migrant workers

NEWDELHI: The Union skill development ministry has chalked out a plan to train at least 300,000 migrant workers who have returned to their home states since March in an attempt to help them upgrade their skills and possibly earn more, according to documents seen by HT.

The training will be offered under the Garib Kalyan Rozgar Abhiyaan. The special job programme, kickstarted by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on June 20, primarily aims to provide jobs in projects worth ₹50,000 crore but it also has a training component for unskilled daily wage workers.

At a meeting on June 16 and 17, the Union skill ministry spoke to different states, asking them to identify 300,000 daily wage wagers willing to take two crash courses on skill development.

The training for unskilled workers will be given under two heads: “1.5 lakh migrant workers under Short Term Training (STT) and another 1.5 lakh in Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL),” said a skill ministry order on June 22.

While STT is typically 300-500 hours of training depending on the job role, RPL varies from 12 hours to 80 hours of training. In its bid to meet the target, the government has also allowed states to reduce the short courses and shift them to recognition programmes.