Mumbai: With an aim to create an ecosystem that empowers young minds by making them job ready or by encouraging them to start businesses of their own, the Adani Skill Development Center (ASDC) has become a force for change across India. The skill-building arm of the Adani Foundation, which is aligned with the central government’s Skill India Mission, recently completed eight years on 16 May, 2024.
It is one of the vital components of the Sustainable Livelihood programme, which runs under the collaboration of the Adani Foundation and the National Skill Development Corporation. It provides a platform for the underprivileged, the marginalised, and the weaker members of society to revitalise and transform their livelihood through skill development – a need of the hour in every sphere of life.
Till date, Saksham, the Adani Foundation’s skill development project, has trained over 1.5 lakh youth across the country in the more than 40 ASDCs in 15 states. Today, youth trained in the ASDCs are generating an annual revenue of nearly Rs. 1,300 crore through entrepreneurship and employment.
One of its most successful sites is Jharkhand’s Godda, where it has upskilled over 4,000 men and 3,000 women. It has created self-employment and entrepreneurship opportunities by promoting local employment, thereby positively impacting the rural economy of the region. Over 650 youth have been placed in reputable organisations within and outside Jharkhand, thereby effectively addressing the problem of unemployment in Godda and reducing it by 20%-30%.
Driven by technology, the Saksham programme offers a wide range of courses, both offline and online. Some of the popular courses include welding technician through augmented reality-based simulator, drone pilot, and multipurpose crane operator training with more than 20 physical simulators at India’s largest skilling centre – the ASDC Krishnapatnam in Andhra Pradesh. Recently, courses for nursing assistant, fire safety, domestic wiring, and smart meter installation through metaverse, along with the foundation of Artificial Intelligence (AI), have been added.
ASDC strives to provide the latest educational content to the youth, with most of the learning and training material currently in the digital format. They are available on the Learning Management System designed by ASDC. Some of the tools taught at the enablement centers are ChatGPT, Leonardo.AI, Synthesia.IO, DeepBrain.AI, Copilot, Canva and Soundraw IO, which help the youth learn about the practical and everyday uses of AI. ASDC is also focusing on data science with drone pilots, 3D printing, data analytics and dashboarding through Looker Studio, Power Bi and Tableau and similar courses and modules.
ASDC is not only focusing on training youth and making them job ready but also helping and guiding them with placements. Some of the trainees of ASDCs have landed jobs in Amazon India and Flipkart.
The efforts, impact, and contributions of ASDCs and the Saksham initiative have been widely recognised, with the latter receiving multiple awards from both national and international institutions. In 2019, after ASDC received the Special Jury Recognition Award at the Indian Chamber of Commerce Social Impact Awards at Kolkata, Adani Foundation Chairperson Dr. Priti Adani had said, “Adani Skill Development Centre is not just skilling the youth of India but also giving them the confidence to grow in every aspect of their lives. We are creating a pool of job seekers and potential entrepreneurs by imparting training in various technical and non-technical skills.”
