'India's Education System Requires a Complete Revamp' AISECT Director says hands-on skill courses, entrepreneurship sessions and moral education should be made mandatory to bring out the best in students

The Indian It industry is hit by a "famine-like' crisis following the increasing number of job cuts.

A lot of questions are being raised over government initiatives like "Make-in-India' and even the education system has not been spared.

Entrepreneur India spoke to Siddharth Chaturvedi, Director, AISECT, to understand how the education system in India could be tweaked to incorporate higher skill-sets and better learning modules for students in the near future.

The ongoing large scale layoffs have put a question mark on the education curriculum in India. What is your opinion?

Our education system actually requires a complete revamp. It should include hands-on skill training after middle school. Also, actual entrepreneurship sessions should be conducted after middle school so that we can sow the seeds of entrepreneurship in the minds of children.

What according to you should engineering colleges in India do to improve chances of employability of their students?

The actual gap which I see in engineering colleges is first in training and apprenticeship and second in internship in the industry. These activities are only eyewash, done for formality sake to cover the syllabus and help students fetch high marks. Besides teaching theory, practical exposure to the industry is the need of the hour.

What are the courses that should become mandatory in schools and colleges today?

Hands-on skill courses, entrepreneurship sessions and moral education are some of the courses that need to be made mandatory to bring out the best in our students.

How can educational institutions and training centres support initiatives like "Make-in-India'

If industry supports and opens its doors to school or college students for apprenticeship and internship, the crisis for skilled manpower can be bridged. Also incubation centers and entrepreneurship development cells in colleges can give a boost to "Make-in-India' initiative.

AISECT is India's leading Social Enterprise working in the areas of Skill Development, Higher Education, Financial Inclusion and other ICT-based services, to bring about inclusive change in the semi-urban and rural areas of the country.

Established in 1985, the Bhopal-headquartered organization has been working towards bridging the skills and ICT gap between urban and rural India and creating local job opportunities for rural youth. AISECT has been untiringly reaching out to the remotest corners of the country to empower people, generate employment for the youth and unfold entrepreneurial initiatives.

With a pan-India presence through 23,000 Skill Knowledge Provider Centres across 29 States and three Union Territories, 10 State offices and 30 Regional offices, AISECT has gradually built its network at the grassroots.