Women empowerment stories signal shift in skilling landscape
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And this change is being facilitated by Skill Impact Bond (SIB), India's first outcome-based skilling initiative.
Launched in 2021 by the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship through the National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC), the SIB aims to train 50,000 youth, with at least 30,150 retained in jobs for a minimum of three months. So far, over 23,700 youth have been trained—72% of them women—across 30 job roles in 13 sectors, working with 700+ employers.
Of these, 75% have secured jobs and 60% have retained employment for over three months—well above national averages.
As India approaches its demographic peak and eyes a $30-trillion economy by 2047, initiatives like SIB offer a roadmap—targeted training, outcome-focused models, and sustained post-placement support. Backed by CIFF, JSW Foundation, HSBC India, and Dubai Cares, the public-private partnership is becoming a scalable model for women-led growth.
Puja, 26, trained as a CNC operator through the Pan IIT Gurukul and moved to Chennai to work with IM Gears, becoming the sole breadwinner for her family. Ishrat, 18, secretly began working in Noida in a data-entry role while pursuing a BA through Delhi University's School of Open Learning. Simran, 21, joined an IT training programme and now works as a customer care executive in Delhi, saving to realise her goal of becoming an air hostess.
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Sakshi, 23, a school dropout from the Malto tribal community, enrolled in Pan IIT's apparel programme in Bengaluru and now earns Rs 15,000 a month, supporting her siblings' education.
Their journeys reflect a fragile but significant transformation among young women from socio-economically disadvantaged backgrounds. Many are first-generation formal workers, navigating rigid social norms, migration, and financial strain to pursue aspirational livelihoods.
Jharkhand leads enrolment figures with 26% of trainees, followed by Uttar Pradesh and Delhi. But the broader skilling landscape remains challenging still: only 4% of India's workforce is formally skilled, and nearly 30% of trained individuals are without paid work. For women, retention is especially challenging for those who have availed traditional schemes. While 84% of those enrolled under such schemes complete certification, fewer than 10% stay in jobs beyond three months.
The SIB attempts to reverse this by tying funding not to enrolment or certification, but to actual job placement and retention. Training providers are incentivised to focus on outcomes through onboarding support, counselling, and alumni follow-up. "Till we come out of our comfort zone, we can't achieve anything," says Ishrat, who still hasn't told her father she works. "At first, I wasn't sure I could manage the machines or being away from home," says Puja, now a trainer.
"Now I want girls in my village to see what's possible."
Sakshi's transformation from a dropout to a salaried worker supporting her family shows what can be achieved with effort.
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Time of India
3 days ago
- Time of India
Women empowerment stories signal shift in skilling landscape
New Delhi: Puja Kumari from a village near Bokaro, Ishrat from a conservative Delhi household, Simran Pandey from the capital's working-class lanes, and Sakshi from Jharkhand's tribal heartland are part of a quiet but distinct shift in India's skilling landscape. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now And this change is being facilitated by Skill Impact Bond (SIB), India's first outcome-based skilling initiative. Launched in 2021 by the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship through the National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC), the SIB aims to train 50,000 youth, with at least 30,150 retained in jobs for a minimum of three months. So far, over 23,700 youth have been trained—72% of them women—across 30 job roles in 13 sectors, working with 700+ employers. Of these, 75% have secured jobs and 60% have retained employment for over three months—well above national averages. As India approaches its demographic peak and eyes a $30-trillion economy by 2047, initiatives like SIB offer a roadmap—targeted training, outcome-focused models, and sustained post-placement support. Backed by CIFF, JSW Foundation, HSBC India, and Dubai Cares, the public-private partnership is becoming a scalable model for women-led growth. Puja, 26, trained as a CNC operator through the Pan IIT Gurukul and moved to Chennai to work with IM Gears, becoming the sole breadwinner for her family. Ishrat, 18, secretly began working in Noida in a data-entry role while pursuing a BA through Delhi University's School of Open Learning. Simran, 21, joined an IT training programme and now works as a customer care executive in Delhi, saving to realise her goal of becoming an air hostess. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now Sakshi, 23, a school dropout from the Malto tribal community, enrolled in Pan IIT's apparel programme in Bengaluru and now earns Rs 15,000 a month, supporting her siblings' education. Their journeys reflect a fragile but significant transformation among young women from socio-economically disadvantaged backgrounds. Many are first-generation formal workers, navigating rigid social norms, migration, and financial strain to pursue aspirational livelihoods. Jharkhand leads enrolment figures with 26% of trainees, followed by Uttar Pradesh and Delhi. But the broader skilling landscape remains challenging still: only 4% of India's workforce is formally skilled, and nearly 30% of trained individuals are without paid work. For women, retention is especially challenging for those who have availed traditional schemes. While 84% of those enrolled under such schemes complete certification, fewer than 10% stay in jobs beyond three months. The SIB attempts to reverse this by tying funding not to enrolment or certification, but to actual job placement and retention. Training providers are incentivised to focus on outcomes through onboarding support, counselling, and alumni follow-up. "Till we come out of our comfort zone, we can't achieve anything," says Ishrat, who still hasn't told her father she works. "At first, I wasn't sure I could manage the machines or being away from home," says Puja, now a trainer. "Now I want girls in my village to see what's possible." Sakshi's transformation from a dropout to a salaried worker supporting her family shows what can be achieved with effort.
India Today
4 days ago
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What is Skill Impact Bond, helping thousands with jobs and training across India
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