Most people leave a partnership only when things fall apart, waiting for an open fight or total failure before taking action. Leaving a bad situation is easy because the choice is forced upon you. Leaving a good situation is much harder. When daily operations are smooth and results look decent, stepping away feels counterintuitive. Yet comfort can easily mask a deep misalignment in core principles. You do not need a crisis to justify moving on, and choosing to step back while everything looks fine is a mark of true maturity.
When Principles Clash Beneath the Surface
Values form the foundational operating system of any venture. When core principles align, daily friction turns into constructive growth. When they clash, external success is merely a temporary distraction. Two sides can easily achieve short-term milestones together while holding entirely different mindsets. However, that underlying gap steadily widens over time. Recognizing this drift early prevents silent differences from eventually exploding into major disputes.
This philosophical rift becomes sharpest in a social enterprise. One side often measures return on investment through community upliftment and lives transformed, while the other evaluates progress solely through financial margins. A social enterprise cannot become overly profit-driven without abandoning its core identity. Purpose vanishes when money becomes the single metric of success. When founders, board members, or investors begin viewing progress through opposing lenses, parting ways early protects the primary mission of the enterprise.
Stated Goal Versus Actual Practice
The hardest exits happen when there are no broken contracts or explicit arguments. On paper, official goals and formal vision statements match perfectly. In reality, daily choices tell a completely different story. Living in that gray zone between stated intent and actual practice creates continuous internal friction, forcing you to compromise your standards just to keep peace. Choosing to walk away under these subtle conditions requires intense personal courage.
Unheeded Warnings and Illusion of Short-Term Spikes
Stepping back is also vital when you foresee an inevitable failure ahead, even while genuinely hoping for a miracle. You offer well-intended warnings, but there are simply no ears or hearts willing to listen. In such moments, temporary wins can be deceptive. A brief flash of progress is merely a sharp spike that tapers far quicker than its rise, often flattening completely with no chance to recover. Holding on during a artificial surge, while warnings fall on deaf ears, only binds you to a predictable collapse.
Diving In with Full Awareness
Stepping into your next chapter with complete clarity is far better than surviving in ambiguity. Leaving a conflicted environment allows you to dive into new commitments knowingly, with open eyes and uncompromised intentions. It shifts your energy away from fighting an invisible daily battle toward building an environment where words and actions truly mirror each other. Accepting short-term personal pain today restores your long-term self-trust and conviction.
Preserving Bridges for the Future
Moving on quietly based on honest reflection ensures that goodwill remains intact on all sides. Because there is no public confrontation or villain, both parties can celebrate shared achievements without lingering bitterness. The professional ecosystem is remarkably small, and sectors are deeply interconnected. An investor, colleague, or partner you separate from today can easily become a well-wisher or collaborator tomorrow or vice versa. Handling a conscious transition with dignity keeps trust alive and leaves doors wide open for whenever paths cross again.
Borrowing the signing off lines from my earlier piece (click to read it)
This is presented as a constructive observation of the PM-SETU (Pradhan Mantri Skilling and Employability Transformation through Upgraded ITIs) scheme. While it is admittedly early days since launch, the significantly slow pace of implementation is deeply worrisome, and extensive discussions with various ground-level stakeholders fail to inspire confidence regarding long-term execution. (Current status of PM-SETU implementation towards the end of this article)
The scheme was originally designed to completely revamp vocational training across India by restructuring 1,000 Government ITIs into a Hub-and-Spoke model comprising 200 Hubs and 800 Spokes. The core objective was to switch from a rigid government-led training style to an industry-managed system where Anchor Industry Partners (AIP) hold a 51% stake in a Special Purpose Vehicle to run the clusters, while government funds up to 83% of the costs. However, rollout has hit significant roadbumps and progress is moving much slower than acceptable. The scheme remains stuck firmly in pre-implementation and tendering stages as states struggle to finalize Requests for Proposals from corporate entities. Beneath this sluggishness lie deep, structural defects in scheme design.
Bureaucratic Friction and Administrative Gridlock
The 51:49 public-private partnership structure sounds good on paper, but it creates intense administrative gridlock. Corporate agility is consistently bottlenecked by traditional, slow-moving government approval cycles. State governments have had to frequently ask the Ministry of Skill Development for clarifications on how to frame agreements, creating massive administrative drag that stalls ground-level execution.
Non-Standardized Portability and Localized Syllabi
Because each Anchor Industry Partner customizes curriculum to fit its own specific factory needs, a syllabus created in Karnataka might differ completely from one in Haryana. If these customized courses do not align perfectly with the National Skill Qualification Framework, student certificates lose value if graduates move out of that specific industrial cluster, severely limiting interstate labour mobility.
Dual Competence Requirements for the Oversight Body
A major institutional weakness is lack of a specialized governance structure capable of managing this transition. An oversight body tasked with managing a massive transformation like PM-SETU cannot function merely as an auditing entity or a bureaucratic ledger-keeper. Because the public-private structure of Special Purpose Vehicles relies on complex escrow accounts and performance-linked milestones, oversight body requires deep financial competence to track milestone-based disbursements, audit asset monetization strategies, and verify whether valuations attached to corporate contributions are fair.
Equally vital is domain delivery competence. The governance framework must include professionals from emerging technical sectors capable of evaluating pedagogical quality, monitoring technology lifecycles, and ensuring that customized curricula maintain alignment with the National Skill Qualification Framework. Without this dual expertise of financial stewardship and deep vocational understanding, the oversight mechanism risks reducing its function to checking boxes rather than ensuring genuine instructional quality and wage-verified placements.
Critical Deficit in Trainer Ecosystems and Pedagogical Gaps
The most severe operational bottleneck threatening PM-SETU is acute non-availability of qualified trainers, a crisis that extends all the way up to master trainers responsible for training other instructors. Installing advanced robotic arms, automation kits, and CNC machines is entirely redundant without personnel capable of teaching students how to operate them. India faces a massive structural deficit in instructors who understand modern technologies like EV maintenance, AI-driven logistics, and smart manufacturing.
This human resource vacuum cannot be solved simply by importing personnel from factory floors. While industry experts possess deep technical knowledge, they frequently lack the vital pedagogical skills required to manage classrooms, design curricula, and break down complex industrial concepts for adolescent learners. Teaching is an entirely different capability set than manufacturing. Conversely, existing ITI faculty lack exposure to modern automation, leaving a massive gap between industrial reality and classroom instruction. The Training-of-Trainers framework within PM-SETU is lagging far behind infrastructure targets, creating a situation where high-tech labs sit idle because there is a total absence of individuals who can both operate the technology and teach it effectively.
Corporate Dilemma and Capitalist Paradox
The reliance on private companies to co-invest and manage these ITI clusters has exposed a fundamental capitalist paradox where Anchor Industry Partners face zero incentive to spend corporate resources to act as public charity, especially if it risks creating talent pipelines for direct rivals. Because ITI graduates are free agents, Anchor Industry Partners cannot legally force them to stay. A competitor who spent zero rupees on training can simply offer these newly skilled graduates slightly higher salaries and steal them away, forcing the investing company to subsidize its competitor’s HR department. Furthermore, teaching cutting-edge Industry 4.0 skills requires exposing internal operational workflows and proprietary tools, creating massive intellectual property risks regarding leakage to rivals. Finding top-tier industrial partners willing to invest heavily in remote, rural Spoke ITIs is also incredibly difficult, as most industrial giants remain concentrated around major manufacturing zones.
Strategic Perks Designed to Attract Private Investment
To convince Anchor Industry Partners to take these risks, the scheme pitches specific operational advantages. While companies cannot legally lock students in, they get exclusive, year-round access through on-the-job training inside corporate facilities. By graduation, these students are fully integrated into company culture and machinery, requiring zero onboarding time. Additionally, major corporations rely on hundreds of Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprise vendors. By managing a PM-SETU hub, an Anchor Industry Partner can train youth who will work for their supply chain vendors, which directly raises component quality and reduces defect rates. Finally, setting up a state-of-the-art training center independently requires 100% private funding, whereas PM-SETU provides up to 83% government funding for capital expenditure, allowing companies to build high-tech training ecosystems for a fraction of market price.
Policy Revisions Required to Accelerate Progress
To get PM-SETU back on track, government needs to implement structural course corrections that address both administrative delays and corporate anxieties. The Ministry should allow Anchor Industries to sign reasonable, legally binding apprenticeship-to-hire contracts where students agree to work for the partner firm for 18 to 24 months post-graduation in exchange for subsidized education. To deter poaching, competing firms hiring a graduate within two years of graduation should be mandated to pay training clawback fees directly to the original investing Anchor Industry Partner.
To resolve the teaching crisis, the government must collaborate with central universities and corporate partners to launch specialized pedagogical diplomas for engineers, transforming industry experts into certified educators. Funding must be aggressively diverted into mandatory corporate training stints for existing ITI faculty. To solve regional disparity, government should offer higher fiscal incentives or tax breaks for companies managing remote Spoke ITIs. Furthermore, the Ministry must mandate a core 70% standardized syllabus aligned with national frameworks, confining industry-specific training to the remaining 30% to ensure certificate portability. Finally, state-level single-window clearance channels must be created to fast-track corporate entity formation, and funding milestones should be strictly tied to actual graduate placement wages rather than mere enrollment numbers.
Several state governments have moved swiftly into the active bidding phase with substantial financial outlays. Haryana has issued an RFP for the Chhara ITI Cluster Upgradation in Jhajjar with a massive project outlay of ₹241 Crore, alongside onboarding project monitoring consultancies. Rajasthan’s Directorate of Technical Education has aligned its tenders with a similar ₹241 Crore per cluster framework, utilizing a structured funding split where the state and center cover 83% of costs, leaving a mandatory 17% (approximately ₹41 Crore) for the winning industry bidder. In the northeast, Assam has invited bids for the Guwahati Cluster, comprising ITI Guwahati as the hub and four surrounding spokes with an estimated project value of ₹281 Crore. Meanwhile, Andhra Pradesh has released highly localized, cluster-specific RFPs targeting key hubs like Kurnool, Dhone, Nellore, and Vijayawada to establish specialized training ecosystems.
Cluster Management and Upgradation Mandates
The technical and financial mandates embedded within these state tenders reflect a uniform strategy to decentralize ITI governance and future-proof the curriculum. Winning bidders across states like Odisha, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, and Tripura are required to establish a Section 8 non-profit Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV), maintaining a 51% industry stake against a 49% government share to ensure operational autonomy. Furthermore, the RFPs strictly bind the selected partners to upgrade infrastructure and introduce the DGT’s newly curated, future-ready courses. This ensures that the upgraded clusters move away from legacy trades and pivot aggressively toward high-demand sectors, including artificial intelligence programming, drone technology, green hydrogen production, semiconductor manufacturing, and 5G infrastructure.
Onboarding Status of Anchor Industry Partners (AIP)
The rollout of the ₹60,000-crore PM-SETU scheme has officially transitioned from the bidding phase to execution, with Andhra Pradesh becoming the first state in India to onboard an Anchor Industry Partner. This milestone was formalized by the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) during the third National Steering Committee meeting.
While AM/NS India is the first to achieve final, formal clearance to begin operations, several other major industry leaders are heavily engaged in the final stages of the selection process. Companies like Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), Hero MotoCorp, Bajaj Auto, and ITC Limited have actively submitted proposals. With 12 states having already closed or nearing the closure of their initial Request for Proposal (RFP) timelines, the central ministry expects a wave of additional AIP onboardings and cluster approvals to be cleared in the coming months.
References
Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) Parliamentary Replies: Unstarred Question responses in both the Lok Sabha (Question No. 4939 & 5928) and the Rajya Sabha (Question No. 3794) answered in March 2026.
Press Information Bureau (PIB) Delhi: The Ministry reiterated these exact numbers in official government press releases titled “Operationalisation of PM–SETU” and “ITI Upgradation Under PM SETU”, issued by the Press Information Bureau.
Disclaimer: This is not an official reply from the Art of Living, but a clarification from a Sadhak and ardent follower of Pujya Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar ji, since he has been posed this question by many during post-Satsangs chats or privately on various SM platforms. The views here are personal and doesn’t reflect organisation’s in any manner either in part or whole
Art of Living (AOL) foundation, established by Pujya Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar in 1981, operates with a core vision of creating a stress-free and violence-free world. Philosophy rests on the belief that global peace can only be achieved by fostering inner peace within individuals. To realize this, Art of Living champions a practical, experiential brand of spirituality centred around Sudarshan Kriya, a rhythmic breathing technique designed to flush out physical and emotional stress, balance the nervous system, and anchor the mind in the present moment. While rooted deeply in ancient Vedic wisdom-incorporating yoga, meditation, and traditional rituals, the organization presents these activities as secular, universal sciences of sound vibration and mental discipline rather than religious dogmas, making them fully accessible to people of any faith or background.
Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam-True Reflection of the One World Family
Despite this inclusive philosophy, a persistent public perception exists that Art of Living is an elite club catering primarily to wealthy and famous people. This misconception is largely driven by visibility, when a Bollywood celebrity, high-profile politician, or corporate executive attends a program, it naturally captures media attention, whereas participation of everyday citizens goes unnoticed. In reality, an overwhelming majority of Art of Living followers arrive at venues via bus stations or railway stations, quietly outnumbering those arriving at airports. Yet, because society and media focus heavily on airports and high-profile arrivals, the true, massive scale of regular public participation remains obscured behind a narrative skewed toward the affluent. Additionally, Art of Living‘s urban centers charge registration fees for courses, which can give an appearance of exclusivity. However, this fee structure is an intentional economic model designed to tap into affluent resources to fund the foundation’s massive, often invisible, humanitarian and grassroots operations (explained later in this article).
Being wealthy or famous is not a crime, nor should it act as a disqualification from spiritual growth or being a beneficiary of Grace of a Master. Affluence and public status often come with unique, crushing burdens, including intense isolation, relentless public scrutiny, high-stakes professional stress, and constant anxiety of maintaining success. Disregarding spiritual and emotional needs of public figures simply because of material wealth is a form of reverse prejudice. True spirituality does not discriminate, just as it does not exclude the poor, it cannot exclude the rich. Grace of a Master is universal, recognizing that under layers of wealth, fame, or poverty, core human longing for peace, love, and Ananda is exactly the same. Excluding anyone based on socioeconomic standing would contradict the very essence of Art of Living‘s inclusive philosophy, which holds that every individual, regardless of status, deserves tools to alleviate suffering and realize highest potential.
Pujya Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar ji
Crucial to this spiritual and cultural mission is extensive work done by Art of Living‘s Vaidic Dharma Sansthan (VDS), which dedicates itself to promotion and propagation of ancient Indian heritage. Vaidic Dharma Sansthan actively preserves knowledge of the Vedas, Yoga, Vedanta, Puranas, Itihasas, and Sanskrit language through educational literature and specialized publications. By establishing and supporting a network of schools, colleges, pathashalas, and research centers, Vaidic Dharma Sansthan provides institutional advancement for Indian culture while training new generations of Swamis and Brahmacharis capable of spreading this ancient wisdom globally. Vaidic Dharma Sansthan bridges ancient traditions with modern life by organizing universal festivals, conducting authentic pujas, Homas, and traditional Vaidic wedding ceremonies, all designed to purify environment and elevate human consciousness. Through these comprehensive efforts, Vaidic Dharma Sansthan successfully inculcates a deep love and appreciation for art, culture, yoga, and heritage in today’s youth, anchoring them in time-tested values.
In reality, the organization is completely agnostic to gender, religion, caste, and nationality, using resources to bridge deep socioeconomic divides. Revenue generated from urban programs directly powers extensive social welfare initiatives, most notably through the 5H program, a massive grassroots model designed to ensure sustainable development in rural areas. Focusing on Health, Hygiene, Homes, Human Values, and Harmony in Diversity, this core framework has uplifted thousands of villages by building homes, conducting medical camps, establishing sanitation facilities, and resolving community conflicts. Alongside this, Art of Living funds over 700 free schools for underprivileged and tribal children, trains lakhs of farmers in sustainable natural agriculture, and revives dying river basins. Additionally, Art of Living runs global trauma-relief operations, disaster response teams, and prison rehabilitation programs that have transformed lives of hundreds of thousands of inmates. Ultimately, while celebrities and wealthy people are highly visible participants, they represent only a fraction of a massive global matrix where the ultimate goal is Ananda (bliss), a universal human experience that remains identical on the meditation mat, regardless of social status.
Art of Living drives comprehensive social change across India through targeted initiatives in rural transformation, ecological sustainability, human empowerment, and crisis rehabilitation. At the grassroots level, the organization fosters self-reliance and community growth through initiatives like Rural Development, Skill Development, and Project Bharat, which train local youth and leaders to uplift village economies. Its commitment to the environment is reflected in massive Water Conservation, River Symposium, and Environment care campaigns, running alongside Organic Farming programs that transition farmers to chemical-free agriculture. To empower vulnerable populations, the organization provides holistic Education for underprivileged children, fosters Women Empowerment, and tackles menstrual hygiene taboos through Project Pavitra. Finally, it promotes deep societal healing and resilience by anchoring Peace initiatives, executing rapid Disaster Relief operations, and driving inmate rehabilitation through its Prison Program.
