The National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan (RMSA), Government of Punjab to introduce vocational education in Senior Secondary Schools in Punjab.
This project has been approved for the state by Ministry of Human Resource Development and accordingly Punjab will be implementing the National Skill Qualification Framework (NSQF) from the academic year 2014-15.
The aim is to start the project at level 1 (Class IX) in about 100 Government schools with the goal to make students employable when they complete secondary education. The project will be jointly funded by Central Government and the State Government under RMSA with sharing pattern of 75:25.
The courses offered will be industry driven based upon National Occupational Standards set by Sector Skill Councils (SSCs) in association with NSDC in six sectors— Automobile, IT /ITES, Retail, Healthcare, Security and Beauty and wellness. The courses will be introduced in a normal track mode in Class IX for level 1 to level 4 for Class XII students.
Before the commencement of every academic year, RMSA will review with NSDC and consider introducing courses under other sectors. NSDC will be completely responsible for the training and delivery, under this project.