Focus: GS II- Government policies and Interventions
Why in News?
Minister of Housing & Urban Affairs and Petroleum & Natural Gas, Government of India, launched an innovative project for skill training of construction workers called ‘NIPUN’ i.e. National Initiative for Promoting Upskilling of Nirman workers.
About NIPUN:
- The project NIPUN is an initiative of the Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs (MoHUA) under its flagship scheme of the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-National Urban Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NULM)
- It will also facilitate and support convergence with related line ministries.
- The National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC), the nodal agency under the Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship (MSDE), Government of India, will be the Implementation Partner for the project NIPUN.
- It will provide trainees with ‘Kaushal Bima’, a three-year accidental insurance with coverage of INR 2 lakhs, digital skills such as cashless transactions and the BHIM app, orientation about entrepreneurship, and EPF and BOCW facilities.
- A project committee with members from both NSDC and MoHUA will be formed under the chairmanship of the Additional Secretary-cum-Mission Director, DAY-NULM to oversee and monitor the project.
Objectives:
- To train over 1 lakh construction workers, through fresh skilling and upskilling programmes and provides them with work opportunities in foreign countries also.
- It will enable the construction workers to seek better job opportunities, increase their wages and even pursue overseas placements – an indication of a new eco-system.
The project implementation is divided into three parts –
- Training through Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) at construction sites,
- Training through Fresh Skilling by Plumbing and Infrastructure SSC and
- International Placement through industries/ builders/ contractors.
Under NIPUN, it is also envisaged that NSDC will place approximately 12,000 people in foreign countries such as the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, UAE and other GCC countries.
DAY-NULM
- It is a Centrally Sponsored Scheme, being implemented since 2014-15,
- Aim: To reduce poverty and vulnerability of urban poor households in the country by enabling them to access self-employment and skilled wage employment opportunities, resulting in an appreciable improvement in their livelihoods on a sustainable basis.
