Cabinet approves apprenticeship scheme for next 5 years; 9 lakh to be trained

NEW DELHI: The Cabinet today approved the continuation of the National Apprenticeship Training Scheme (NATS) for next five years. Nearly 9 lakhs apprentices will be trained by industry and commercial organisations, the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs said.

The Cabinet Committee chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi gave its approval for stipendiary support of Rs 3,054 crore to apprentices who undergo apprenticeship training under NATS of Ministry of Education for the period from 2021-22 to 2025-26 that is upto March 31, 2026.

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The apprentices who have completed graduate and diploma programme in Engineering, Humanities, Science and Commerce will be given stipends of Rs.9,000/- and Rs.8,000/- per month respectively, according to the official statement.

The Government has approved an expenditure of more than Rs 3,000 crore during the next five years which is about 4.5 times the expenditure made during the previous 5 years. This increased expenditure on apprenticeship is in line with the thrust which National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 has given to apprenticeship.

The scope of NATS has further been expanded to include students from humanities, science and commerce besides students from engineering stream.

“The scheme aims to raise the standards of skill level by strengthening the skill ecosystem and as a result, will provide employment to approximately 7 lakhs youths in the next five years,” it said.

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The NATS will provide apprenticeship in the emerging areas under 'Production Linked Incentive' (PLI) such as Mobile manufacturing, Medical devices manufacturing, Pharma sector, Electronics/Technology products, Automobile sector etc. The scheme will also be preparing skilled manpower for connectivity/logistics industry sectors, identified under GatiShakti.