Skill development center experience at Gujarat Ambuja

Last week, my work took me to Saurashtra area of Gujarat and I covered three districts in a span of 4 days. It is the coastal line of Gujarat where the Trust has been working towards reducing the impact of salinity ingress, which is the impact of reduction in soil fertility on account of salt water percolating into agricultural land. The visit was done to understand the work being done by few of the organizations in that area towards skill development of youth. It is to be understood that skill development of youth is crucial both for ensuring that there is availability of trained human resource for the economic growth and secondly, in the absence of options for working, the likelihood of turning the demographic dividend into liability looms large.

The problem statement reads thus 'Nearly 80% of new entrants to the workforce in India have no opportunity for skill training. Against 12.8 million new entrants to the workforce per annum, and a target of skilling 500 million people by 2022, the existing capacity is to train only 3.1 million per annum. How will this divide be bridged in a short time?' [from ORF newsletter on skill development]

Various initiatives have been taken by the Central government and also by some specific state government to trigger useful work in this domain. I felt specifically about the experience of one of these visits that i made recently to the magnificant township of Gujarat Ambuja Cement in Ambujanagar, Kodinar taluka in Junagadh district. The work done by the organization in the area of agriculture is something that needs to be seen to be believed in a geography that has been under drought. The water management has been amazing along with efforts in the area of increasing the productivity of land.

view from Gujarat Ambuja township

The organization is spread out of several states and other than its chief business of manufacturing cement, it also runs skill development centers through its foundation 'Ambuja Cement Foundation'. The centers are termed SEDI- Skill and Entrepreneurship Development Center. There are 17 such centers across various states in total.

Skill development center at Kodinar

Inorder to understand the magnitude of the problem and the need for such interventions, one has to go to those geographies where you have youth with no hope for dependence on agriculture based livelihood and who have dropped off from mainstream formal education for various reasons viz. financial problems at home, lack of quality of education and hence no interest in continuing, inability to see future in the flow of formal education etc.Lot of these youth enter the cities and join menial work and end up in living a dissatisfied life marked with drudgery.

Some of the interesting aspects that I learnt from the coordinator of this center- who according to me was really well suited for the role which entails labouriously working with the grassroot people in a far flung rural area Kodinar. He mentioned that he was one of the top 5 master trainers in Gujarat Government in the area of Natural Resource Management and his friends were highly sceptical when he chose to shift to this place all the way from Ahmedabad (an important city for both business and cultural center in Gujarat).  This was something that he answered when i asked him specifically about his own background in this domain of work.


Some of the interesting points:

1. The target group comprises of students whose parents must mostly be either not holding any agricultural land and would be involved as labour in other land owners farms. This ensures that the students who come to them are actually deserving and hence would value the inputs being given.
2. The engagement with community was fundamental to get students since how do you distinguish yourself amongst 20 other private services providers whose ads they were seeing every day. They went ahead and actually discussed their dream with the villagers on what was their aspiration about their youth that they would want fulfilled. On learning that they wanted to have a good school in their vicinity and that it couldn't get done for some reason, they motivated them with supporting the foundation with their own efforts to build a skill development school. So people pitched in with their skills on electrical fitting, flooring etc. Thus the cost of building the center was significantly brought down and more importantly, there was a sense of ownership amongst the community. These are very sensitive conversations and the challenge can't actually be explained through words. This is a complete leadership challenge according to me since you are trying to offer something to a group who has no inkling of what work being agriculture actually is.
3. The curriculum was prepared after due diligence of studying the existing course material available through ITIs and NCVT and realizing that they are much behind the modern technology that is in requirement. The need was assessed by visiting various organizations and understanding the technologies and practices being used by them. At present they run courses on Electrical works, welding, nursing, BPO entrance training etc.
4. The trainers who were brought in were people who had spent significant years in that discipline. It was interesting to note that they didn't go for people who wanted to train because they didn't have any better option. They thought in vocational training, the best people would always want to be in practise and hence all their trainers are people who either work in Ambuja plant or people who retired after significant services given in the areas like nursing etc from outside. The trainers are experts in their domains and are more practioners than teachers and hence most of their inputs are actually given through working on live models.

5.The training is done by starting with videos as against showing them text from books as they realize that these are students who have not had a great time with books and thats one reason they had to drop off. So better start with methods that they would be more comfortable with. The batches are divided keeping in view the need to optimize the availability of both machines and classrooms and understanding how do you make the best of the limited resources. Gujaratis as a community would probably be the best in India in this capacity as they have proven this in various business spheres.

Hands on training to the students. Trainer standing to the left

 The center has tied up with Gujarat Government modular skill development program scheme and hence students are able to get one certificate from the center, one from the government (after formal assessment) and a marksheet at the end of it. The courses have reasonable demand from the market since placement is given key priority and they see to it that students who actually go from rural to urban centers are able to adjust to the significantly different environment that they find in the cities. It is to be noted that these youngsters get employed for around 8000 to 11000 Rs per month and they are taught how to manage their financials in these compensation levels and also ensure that they are able to develop their skills further so that their career growth is secured. At present over 6500 students are able to complete these short term courses every year.
The institute also emphasizes on students entering through proper competitive process so that they are able to value the job that they get at the end of it. There is significant effort made to ensure that students develop the attributes of communication, team work, work ethics etc,which are fundamental and can't actually be taught through classroom based methods. In the image below, we can see students actually coming and speaking for a minute or two on what was the interesting thing that they learnt in the last one month. This is done every day before starting the sessions so that students get to learn to speak in an open forum in English.

Student coming and expressing his key learnings in the month in front of the whole group during morning assembly

It is to be noted that since they also train girls to become nurses, they have to take added care when ensuring their employment in urban centers. There are cases of harrassment of girls in private hospitals and hence due interest is taken to validate the credentials of the hospital and atleast two nurses are sent in one hospital. They have provided all contact details for close follow up.

I really liked the well grounded and thought through approach that the organization had adopted and considering the difficulty in starting vocational training for the manufacturing sector particularly in rural centers, i think this was a promising story. The coordinator was right in expressing that one may really not get to understand the core challenges of running such centers by referring to secondary reports alone..

On travelliing

A remarkable essay on travelling. Feel like rereading it few times as it has so much to offer.

The idea of sharing is so holy. I came across this link from someone whom i included long back in google + but have never ever spoken to. You get access to just so many good works just because there are people who believe in this noble idea.

Will read it again soon  :)

Special teachers

Two recent posts on teachers made poignant reads

This one is from a teacher who was troubled with the policies of the government of US and decides to quit not his job but the profession of teaching itself. The points he raises, are debatable and need very careful examination.

In this article, Sudheendra Kulkarni remembers his teacher from his school days who died recently and how he touched his life in special ways .  He remembers the traits that he stood for and very frankly admits that his teacher was not too happy with his efforts. It is to be noted that the author was part of PMO of Atal Bihari Vajpayee and is a senior member of BJP.

Good teachers are intense and sensitive beings. They live deeply embedded in their times and issues they get concerned about, may not even appear issues for many.  Its because they experience life differently. These qualities were found to be common in most writeups by or about good educators.

Another example of sensitivity can be seen in this article  written couple of year back by one of most respected educationists in the country- Krishna Kumar, who expressed his anger at the way women were increasingly projected in movies. This was much before the sudden deluge after the most unfortunate episode of rape in Delhi in December'12.

We need to listen to their voice. Like Naseeruddin Shah says in the movie, Firaaq to his domestic help who is trying to repair his TV, that atleast this old model that i have has sound if not visuals and expresses 'agar humne dekhne se zyada sunne pe dhyan diya hota, to shayad hum behtar ho pate'.

Listening is a highly underestimated skill.

Against unfettered freedom

An insightful piece by David Brooks on the need for balancing freedom with restraint. The context is America but I guess it is equally relevant for the changes that are sweeping the major cities in India as well. Focuses on a very significant sociological phenomenon.

Essay on inequality

A very thought provoking essay on inequality in our society

Small and Big Steps

Yesterday I came across few developments from different quarters. The messages were read completely casually and hence the pattern that emerged left me thinking..

1. A social entrepreneurship venture in Kenya that has come out with a cost effective technology with a sound business model to back it for providing electricity to the people in the country who are still languishing in the shadows of the glitz that marks the other part of the world
2. A news brief explaining how Indian railways is will be installing 2500 ecofriendly toilets as against the present shoddy system of human waste disposal. Each unit will apparently cost around  Rs100000.  Thats a big sum of money ! Considering that a train generally has around 16 coaches, this will approximately cover close to 156 trains and which is really good.
3. The third piece of data I received was from the pollution board of the state where I reside. It was an SMS- "Let's celebrate eco friendly Holi, avoid chiemcial toxic colour, use natural Eco Friendly colours, save water, protect environment- Maharashtra Pollution Control Board"

One may say that I chose to read on a given topic and hence found three messages that are indicative of the small and big steps being taken at various geographies but the interesting part for me was that these three bits of information have come almost on the same day and I just happened to read about them. They are developments at different levels of space viz. First one in a different country and continent, Second one at a Central govt level in India and the third one is at a Regional level again in India.

These initiatives are indicative of the efforts being taken at different levels by different stake holders and they will surely have an impact on the ground. It may need reciprocation from various quarter- such as the third one on the appeal by the pollution control Board.

Many a times the magnitude of the problem- like sustainability is daunting and gives us a perception that there is little that is happening but if we truly try to count such efforts and consolidate them over a period of time, it surely would amount to a wise set of decisions that lead us to live in a more harmonious way with nature. Its a very positive trend.

Every small and big step would matter. What matters is to act. All have a role to play- big or small.

Power of the Powerless by Havel

The timeless essay - "Power of the Powerless" by Vaclav Havel.

A peep into the history of social media

A nice article giving sound instance of how the new word 'social media' is not actually a thing of today.  The author explains the effort of Luther in Germany way back in 16th century and how he managed to shape public opinions during his times.

It was a refreshing read on the subject

Pseudo heroism?

The above image has been taken from one of the protest in a European country in the year 2011. A close examination of this visual struck me from the point of view of the number of people who were trying to capture images at the moment. Several people can be seen weilding cameras, phones, ipads or some other gadget. One thought that came to me was possibly that there are people from the media. But the sheer number of such individuals as seen in the visual makes me wonder whether they are all from the media.

There are two aspects to it-

• In the age of social media, we want to feel good about ourselves and what we have been upto. Sharing of images from such protests when one is part of it is one aspect of this self love. 
• There is a sense of romanticisation about fight against state which has been glorified not just by media but also by entertainment industry. Films like Hazaron Khwaishein Aisi, Hazar Chaurasi ki Ma, Rang de basanti are all testimony to it. There are some movies from India. There are several from the west too where the oppresive state against unarmed citizens makes for an engaging story. Remember the iconic image of the revolutionary Che that we have seen on many a t-shirts?

A genuine revolutionary whose image became iconic amongst youth

An image from Rang de Basanti signifying the attitude of 'letting go'

In a state of extreme emotion, do we really feel like pulling out our camera to capture being present there?

There is a sense of high that one feels by claiming that one got hit by police or else when one was caught by the police. But isn't it totally different from the kind of struggle that freedom fighters did or else people like Suu Kyi and all have gone through. Shouldn 't people try to be more genuine when they seek to be in the middle of such movements.


Movements require passionate people and the passion should be towards the cause and nothing else. But if one enters into these protests for the sheer appeal of being captured in the press or sharing it on facebook, it loses its essential value. And the same momentum can't last beyond few hours. All leaders who start such movements should be vary of such 'supporters' as it is very difficult to guage from the crowd as to who is supporting what at that point in time.

This is one reason why Gandhian followers (in the true sense) and on extreme level terrorists never care to come in front of the media. Media searches for them when possible. They are committed to the cause because they believe in a given ideology, they understand its roots, history and possibilities. They are not there for bubble fames. And such people will aways be few.

It is important to distil true heroism from pseudo heroism. The former gives you numbers but the latter is about sustained strength.

The age of Eklavyas

 Any person who has taken interest in Mahabharata even remotely would be aware of the story of Eklavya. The famous archer who considered Drona to be his guru and developed his expertise after taking inspiration from him. Drona didn't agree to teach him archery because he was associated with Arjuna- a kshatriya, while Eklavya was apparently from a lower sociological strata. This didn't deter Eklavya to give up his passion.

Fast forward and come to the 21st century. There may be few Dronas now who may be unwilling to tutor anyone for sociological reasons. But on the flip side there are millions who can't really afford to pay to learn from professors of the best universities of the world.  Had internet existed in the age of Mahabharata, Eklavya would have been able to see Drona on youtube, listened to his thoughts on podcast, read about his theories of warfare online and may be even attended his webinar without Drona ever getting to know about all this. We are all Eklavya's in some form trying to learn from Dronas scattered all over the world. The distance between Arjuna and Eklavya has shrunk considerably.

Today we as Eklavyas can get to learn from whosoever we want to, provided we have the intent and inclination to do that. Big assumption being we can afford to access internet. 

And the icing on the cake is that, the Drona will not get to ask his thumb as gurudakshina any more.

It has taken several ages to reach this stage. Some distances are just so long to cover !

Lokpal: Civil society is as much at crossroad as the government

Couple of months back I posted my thoughts about the need for Anna and the team to do some soul searching considering the increasing tensions that were evident and out there in the media for us to absorb. The fears that i had at that time didn't prove too off the mark looking at the response that the movement received this time.

Anna Hazare and his team did a wonderful job in bringing the issue of corruption to national consciousness. Considering the various layers and layers of issues and important questions that lie in each clause at a technical level, it is critical that the bill is debated thoroughly before it sees the light of the day. The debates in the Parliament undoubtedly were fine exhibition of understanding of legislation and political rhetoric. A learning experience for me for sure.

As much as it will be important to understand in what form Congress brings the bill back to Lok Sabha, it will be critical to understand what does Anna do to build the pressure for a strong Lok Pal. When i state thus, i am not referring to Anna as the person who should be responsible for creating pressure but as someone who has already taken the lead and did manage to capture the imagination of people at large. Its not his agenda alone but a national cause for which he waged the battle.

To understand the sudden silence in December's fast, it may help to do a kind of referendum (on its own approach) that the group claimed to do in Chandni Chowk to understand what really went wrong. Why weren't people enthusiastic any more. And the more difficult question is how do we enthuse people now?

Just one day prior to the proposed fast i.e on 26th of Dec, law minister- Salman Khurshid was asked by Barkha Dutta about what he felt about the over 1 lakh people who had signed the online petition towards "jail bharo" call  His response was 'signing online and actually going to jail are completely different aspects. We will see how many actually do that.'  As a politician it is not surprising that their sense of pulse of people will be better than people outside or else why will they be elected representatives but that surely should also encourage us as citizens to understand where did the civil society lose out?

In a very interesting turn, Medha Patkar who was as vocal as anyone can be in the August'11 fast, in one of the talk shows held just the day the bill was being debated in Rajya Sabha states that they should not insist on the timeline now that the debate is being done rigorously. This again is a shift from the earlier stand of we have to get the bill passed in the winter session.

Thus it seems that every aspect of argument or stand that one is taking in the passing of this historic bill, there are strong arguments from either side and a loud claim of one section knowing it all is highly misplaced at least and a grave error at maximum. Thus if someone says that the panel should have representation from various sections, another section of society says why should there be quota in something like LokPal which should be an unbiased body. Similarly Pratap Bhanu Mehta- head of center for civil society made a compelling case in front of Standing Committee on why the PM should not be part of Lok Pal and how that argument was fairly strong. Thus if each aspect of this bill along with the method of public pressure is so contentious, it is anyone's guess on what will work and what won't.

Thus strategizing for Anna is going to be very difficult going ahead since one it would call for him to eat some of the words that he committed and secondly each decision would be fraught with greatest uncertainty on how the civil society will actually take it and whether it would support it.

It has to be principally understood that in a political domain, one's powers emerge from the support base that we are able to gather and not our belief or conviction alone. If the latter doesn't result in the former, the person will be as weak or strong as any other person walking on the street.

The essential flame

A brilliant article by Aung San Suu Kyi examining the role of power and passion in shaping nations.