What is the AICTE?
The All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) was established in November 1945, was provided the role of an advisory body which later on transformed into a statutory body under the Department of Higher Education. It is responsible for proper planning and coordinated progress and development of technology along with the management education system in India. It sets the planning measures, formulation of norms and standards as well as the maintenance of it.
What is the Kaushal Augmentation and Restructuring Mission of AICTE ( KARMA)?
The AICTE has launched KARMA to impart skill training through approved institutions to school dropouts after Class 10 onwards in the self-financing mode. The courses will be following the National Skills Qualification Framework (NSQF) and the institutes providing the opportunity need to have the necessary infrastructure in the domain name of skilling. A list of approved institutions is available on the official website of AICTE. The aim of starting this scheme is to fight the double-edged sword of shortage of skilled manpower and under-skilled existing employment class.
Beneficiaries of KARMA
- The Scheme is only applicable to candidates that have at least cleared Class 10/ ITIs.
- The Scheme provides opportunities to anyone who wants to pursue, upskill or attain a higher order of skills and is currently residing in the proximity of a college/ polytechnic.
- The candidate must hold a valid Aadhar card and also fulfill other criteria for the respective job roles as defined in the NSQF.
Objectives of the AICTE KARMA SCHEME
- The training under this Scheme shall be any demand-led domain-specific training activity preferably in core or sub-core engineering sectors leading to employment.
- The encouragement is pushed through institutions for making the best use of the existing infrastructure of higher education during the off-hours for skill training by restructuring the existing infrastructure for the skill courses specifically, syllabus, curriculum, training AIDs as per the NSQF aligned Qualifications.
- There is strategic planning of skilling initiatives to create a skilled and certified workforce, who not only contribute towards India’s growth but also drive the company into becoming the universal leader in skill generation.
Some Guidelines for the Scheme
- Selection procedure
Online application will be invited from the AICTE approved Technical Institutes / Polytechnics by issuing a public notice on the official website. The proposals are then submitted in the prescribed format within a specified time period. The proposals are evaluated and based on merit , a list of selected institutions along with the programmes will be released to the website.
- Mode of training
Can either be a hybrid of theory and practical under the approved institutions. Another approach might be that theory base might be delivered digitally / and the practical portion is delivered physically on campus.
- Assessment
The assessment of the skill quality delivered under this scheme is the prime responsibility of the institute through NCVT approved agencies.
All in all, the Government has been applauded for this commendable Scheme’s release and is motivated to plan more of such similar schemes that are all- round beneficial.