Skill Development

Adios Amigos – Concluding An Incredible Chapter

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As I prepare to conclude my tenure at NTTF on September 30, 2026, I look back with immense gratitude and deep fulfillment after an eventful and fulfilling journey spanning three distinct innings, the best of which was the 2nd one, right amidst students and with the best team I ever was associated with. One common thread in all three innings is “everyone & everything here gives anyone an opportunity to learn, unlearn and relearn”

Thank you Team

Tribute to Our Early Leadership

I want to offer my deepest tribute and respects to our earlier leadership who were instrumental in sparking my keen interest and urge to be part of this wonderful organisation despite it not being so financially rewarding as defined by the material world.

Last Picture of the Leadership Team with Late Dr Reguraj

My heartfelt gratitude goes to Late Dr. Reguraj—the true Vishwakarma of India’s skill development whose inspiring legacy at NTTF captured by me in this reflection on Dr. Reguraj’s legacy together with Mr. Arulselvan, Mr Louis, Mr. K. Venugopal, Mr. Rajagopal, and the late Mr. Anil Kumar, (who together with Dr. Reguraj were instrumental in me quitting an IT major and joining NTTF). Not to forget super seniors like Mr Ramachandran, Mr Madhu, Mr Cheriyan, Mr Gibson who sacrficed golden opportunties to dedicate significant part of their lives in service of NTTF. Being part of a system creating immense social impact and transformational value was an incentive that easily beat all personal financial gains.

Memories From Electronic City Campus

Here is the Reason why I wanted come back to campus every morning (to the extent I hated holidays)

The core academic and support team at the Electronic City Campus remains exceptionally close to my heart. During my time here as Principal, I had the privilege of leading a team of over 130 members, which stands out as the best phase of my 39 years of professional life. We recently created a WhatsApp group called “Golden Years,” and everyone joined overnight, which indicates the level of bonding we still share today. Cannot forget support function colleagues like Srikant, Anthony Raj, Sada, Senthil, Wardens etc both in NEC and also some lovely people in the corporate support functions. They made this humongous task look so easy and most importantly enjoyable.

My journey was also immensely enriched by colleagues from other units especially Kalpana, Jayaraj, Rajasekaran, Noble Peter, Preetha, Satish Joshi, Nidhin, and Joby, with whom I shared unforgettable conversations, collaborations, and camaraderie along the way.

However, it was not all hunky-dory, beginning with a literal initiation by fire when the Electronic City Campus, not until then known for being overly disciplined, faced a turbulent period with trainees resorting to a forced closure of the campus for a longer unauthorized vacation. Thanks to my incredible team, alongside Dr. Reguraj, Mr. Arulselvan, and Mr. Venugopal who stood by me steadfastly, we took unprecedented disciplinary action that ensured we never faced similar issues thereafter. Yet, the path also brought profound personal grief and heartbreaking tests of resilience. I sadly lost a total of five dear students to tragic accidents, a couple more to personal and family struggles where they took their own lives at home, and another precious student to a congenital heart condition. These unimaginable losses nearly broke me, making me question whether trading the corporate world for academia was truly worth it. It was Dr. Reguraj’s timely, grounding intervention that pulled me through when he gently asked, “What happens to the other 1,600+? Aren’t they your children and important too?”, a perspective that forever reshaped my dedication.

Memorial for 2 students whom we lost in a Bike Crash

Skill Development And Digital Growth

Coming back to my latest innings, again out of pure love for this organisaiton and total respects for Dr Reguraj (I remember the efforts of Ms Freeda during this phase – convincing and almost forcing me to hop on and let things happen), Brought in for playing an active part in the skill development SBU team that was a core part of my responsibilities. Together, we managed to turn things around and perform exceptionally well, until my heart went out due to some development (absolutely due to personal values and principles and not due to any other professional reasons) since April 2025, making it wise to call it a day when the going was good.

Serving as Head of Digital Properties along with Samyuktha also offered a wonderful journey of digital transformation where I could bring in my earlier IT process experience and it indeed was a fruitful and goal driven role. Handling the Life Long Learning Centre further added a completely new dimension to my career outlook, while coordinating alumni relations allowed me to connect with so many distinguished alumni, and happy outcome was an exponential increase in alumni engagement. Thank you dear colleagues in all these functions – you made handling these roles a cakewalk and successful. A huge decision to quit IT world and switch to financially non-remunerative and hitherto new domain (Skill Development) was largely due to unconditional and unflinching support of the Alums from the initial batches of NEC, who simply kept on cheering me up, especially when things looked gloomy. Thanks Sudha, Jay, Nagaraj, Joseph, Chip and Aparna (my better half) for their invaluable support at all stages that helped me deliver excellence in a place that was almost written off.

Philanthropy & Livelihood

I also received the rare opportunity to engage with big-ticket philanthropists and corporate CSR honchos who left an indelible mark on my thought process in this material world. I learned and attempted to imbibe what “Selfless Giving or Nishkama Karma (तस्मादसक्तः सततं कार्यं कर्म समाचर)” means. I particularly recall fondly the impact of M/s Hemant & Manikandan of Redington Foundation, Mr Rao of Volvo Trust, Rimy & Hitesh, CSR Leadership of IOCL, BPCL, GAIL, NMDC and many many others, on my thought process in this regard. Special Thanks also to Mr Sivakumar, Mr Sathyan, Mr Shirish, Mr NN Rao, Mr. Misra, Mr Ranjan, Mr Rajesh, Mr Nihar, Mr Kamat and so many who went out of their way to help me achieve bigger altruistic goals. A special note of gratitude goes out to all of you who placed your trust in us to deliver impactful social impact projects under your CSR Programs. I am equally thankful to the bureaucrats (IAS officers) and government officials, Ministers of Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Odisha, Bihar and Haryana to name a few whose continuous encouragement, guidance, and drive pushed us toward excellence while creating a lasting, meaningful impact on our beneficiaries. I cannot forget the earlier days working closely with Shri Subbaiah Sankaran, IAS who ignited the spark to focus on disadvantages and under-served communities

Student Success

Above all, thousands of my dearest students who were the absolute best part of the journey. Hearing their success stories or meeting them in airports made every single struggle and effort completely worthwhile. Seeing bright young minds like Vivek, Saikripa, Rohit, Alekhya, and Dhanush—to name just a few evolve into confident professionals, entrepreneurs and soaring achievers has been the ultimate reward, reflecting the true soul of NTTF’s mission.

Captain & Friend for Life

This expression of gratitude will not be complete if I did not write a note of appreciation to Ravi Tennety, the Managing Director. The organisation’s recent accomplishments are not just milestones, they were manifestations of efforts rooted in integrity and guided by a vision for the greater good, making success inevitable. It is indeed raining achievements, each one a reflection of thoughtful strategy, responsive governance, and a deep understanding of internal and external community needs. The winning factor has been an exemplary leadership of honesty, adaptability, and foresight, fostering an environment where innovation thrives, individuals are empowered, and in a contest between process and person, the process wins. Moving from ad-hocism to predictability, the institution now thrives in this comfort zone, with the ripple effects visible in unthinkably quick turnarounds and transformed lives. Though our formal association has been short, it has been sweet, profound, and deeply transformative. Ravi is an extraordinary human being, a great associate, and a friend for life truly, but for his stellar mentorship and persuasion, this good bye post would have come about in January 2025 itself! Thank you Ravi for Being you. I am sure each one in NTTF would agree when I say that organisation is lucky to have you around as the Captain. It is a cinch that under your leadership, NTTF has only way to go: Up, Up and Up right to the skies. Good Luck dear Friend!

Finally…

Signing off on a Philosophical note, since many of my colleagues here, sooner than later would be at similar crossroads hitting the wrong side of age. Please note this amazing piece of wisdom was given by my Gurudev – coincidentally it was in 2017 when I moved on from NTTF after a memorable 2nd innings.

May 4th 2017

Life moves through endless circles of hello and goodbye. Whether leaving a cherished office desk or bidding farewell to dear friends at a railway platform, separation carries a quiet weight. Yet wisdom reminds us that endings are merely transitions. Just as Ganesha removes obstacles to clear new paths, every farewell opens a fresh chapter written by destiny. Letting go is not loss, it is making space for new beginnings. Every handshake and last wave carries blessings of Maa Saraswati through knowledge gained and shared during the journey.

Making space for New beginnings

The hardest part of any great tenure isn’t learning how to lead, it’s knowing precisely when to leave.

In Indian tradition, life is measured in Ashramas, Dharmic chapters or stages of one’s life. The Grihastha (householder) doesn’t linger indefinitely in the seat of authority, there is a sacred grace in stepping back while the steps are still steady and the mind is still sharp.

There is an old story of a master craftsman who spent decades shaping a temple’s final spire. When the stone was set and the mortar dried, he didn’t pick up his chisel to carve his name. He simply laid his tools down on the workbench, walked out the gates at sunrise, and never looked back. Not because his work was finished (art is never truly finished) but because the structure no longer needed his hands. In fact, it needed his absence to breathe on its own.

Leaving before the door is closed for you is the ultimate luxury of timing. It transforms an ending from an exit into a passage, leaving behind a legacy that stands upright, and stepping forward into the next sunrise with empty hands ready for new work.

As has happened earlier in my life and with this organisation too, physical distance never diminishes genuine bonds. Goodbyes are only temporary pauses in a lifelong symphony. Just as rivers eventually merge into the boundless ocean, every parted soul finds its way back through memories and love. Walking forward with a light heart, trusting that every goodbye prepares the spirit for a glorious hello. So Until the next Hello,

Each one of us in these pictures continue to be connected and in regular touch even today

Adios Amigos

Wishing everyone in and associated with NTTF and their near ones a great and prosperous future ahead.

From Attappady to Conference Room – Inspirational Journey of Neeli

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Memorable and Inspirational Journey
Cartoonised from Original Photographs using Gemini

Last Sunday, I walked into a humble but cozy home in Bengaluru for a birthday lunch. My host was a young girl from the 2016 Government of Kerala sponsored batch, a group of over 200 tribal youth brought down from remote forests of Attappady to be trained as Electronic Technicians. She now shares this home with five of her classmates from that very same batch, a visual treat when I saw how far they have all come together.

Over lunch, memories came rushing back. She recalled her early days in the city, intense culture shock, daunting language barrier, and overwhelming urge to pack her bags and run back to familiar sanctuary of the hills. She reminded me of how I had refused to let her give up as it was during my tenure as head of the training institution, deploying every method from firm discipline to patient counseling to help her navigate those initial hiccups.

Her gratitude was not just for a career or monthly paycheck, it was for dignity and security it brought her family. With tears in her eyes, she shared a moment that meant more to her than any corporate milestone, the day she was able to take her ailing mother to a proper, well-equipped hospital for treatment, stepping away forever from a thatched hutment that passed for a clinic in their native forest.

Her journey from a quiet, hesitant girl in the woods to a thriving professional in the heart of India’s tech hub is a story of grit, transformation, and unshakeable resolve.

When Neeli first left her hamlet in 2016, morning mist hung low over dense forests of Attappady. She had never stepped out of the hills, had worn only traditional attire, and spoke a native tribal dialect mixed with broken Malayalam. The world outside was a myth she had only heard of until a government sponsored skill development drive brought her batch down to Bengaluru.

The transition was brutal.

The bustling metropolis was an alien planet. For Neeli and her peers, primary hurdles were not just circuit diagrams or soldering irons, they were foundational lifestyle shifts. Structured environment demanded strict personal hygiene, formal attire, and relentless punctuality, concepts entirely foreign to life governed solely by sun, moon and seasons.

Compounding the struggle were ingrained habits. Weaning the group away from routine tribal addictions required immense patience, firm counseling, and constant monitoring. Language felt like an insurmountable wall. Technical terms in English sounded like noise, and even basic daily communication in the hostel was a battle. Many in the batch wept in silence, paralyzed by homesickness and culture shock, ready to pack their bags and flee.

Neeli almost broke too. But every time she felt like giving up, she remembered her mother working tirelessly under harsh sun back in Attappady, struggling just to secure two meals a day. Neeli’s resolve was not built on ambition for personal fame, it was forged in a quiet promise to give her mother a dignified life.

She decided to fight.

When training hours ended, while others rested, Neeli stayed back. She spent hours in front of a mirror, practicing basic phrases to overcome her language barrier. She adapted to disciplined routine, taking pride in her clean uniform and sharp presentation. She picked up soldering wire, studied circuit boards until her eyes burned, and slowly began grasping logic behind electronic components.

Her quiet determination did not just change her, it inspired the rest of her batch. Seeing her dedication, others found their footing, shedding reluctance and leaning into discipline required to succeed. By the end of the rigorous program, Neeli was unrecognizable from the shy, hesitant girl who had stepped off the bus months earlier. She graduated as a skilled, confident technician.

Her real trial began when she secured placement at a top French multinational electronics manufacturing firm. Stepping onto a high-tech shop floor filled with state-of-the-art machinery and strict global standards, she faced a whole new level of pressure.

Yet, grit honed during her training days paid off. She moved up from assembly line operator to taking on complex technical responsibilities. Her sharp eye for quality, unwavering work ethic, and ability to bridge communication gaps earned respect of both her peers and management.

Today, Neeli works as Line Manager at that French multinational, directly leading a team of technicians and engineers.

The girl who once struggled to speak outside her forest dialect now leads operational stand-up meetings. The family that once survived on daily wages in the hills now lives in comfort, supported by a daughter who refused to let her background define her horizon. Neeli’s journey stands as living testimony to what pure resolve and a daughter’s love for her mother can achieve.

PS:

I respectfully acknowledge the role of Visionary Kerala Bureaucrat Shri Subaiah Sankaran, IAS (Click for his LinkedIn Profile) in shaping destiny of thousands of unserved sections of the society. It was his idea to ensure sustained livelihood for the community through Skill Training, instead of propping them through Dole.

Name of the trainee changed to protect her identity

Stipends, Stigma, and Structure: Why NAPS Applications Hit a 6-Year Low

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Applications generated under the National Apprenticeship Promotion Scheme (NAPS) plunged to a six-year low in 2025 despite employers continuing to offer apprenticeship opportunities, according to data from the scheme’s public dashboard. 
The number of applications generated fell to 401,560 in 2025, the lowest since 2019. Applications had peaked at 4.28 million in 2022 before declining to 2.97 million in 2023 and 2.53 million in 2024. The latest figure is more than 90 per cent below the 2022 peak.

Global and Indian Apprenticeship Decline

Headlines in Business Standard screamed louder than the loudest Deepavali Firecracker. Apprenticeship applications under the National Apprenticeship Promotion Scheme (NAPS) in India have hit a six-year low of just over 4 lakh, reflecting a broader global shift in how early-career paths are viewed. While organizations continue to post opportunities on government portals, actual candidate demand has plummeted significantly. This downward trend highlights a systemic disconnect between the current structure of vocational training and the immediate financial, professional, and cultural needs of young job seekers.

Pic Courtesy: Gemini

Aspirational Deficit Among Youth

A fundamental roadblock is the complete lack of aspirational value associated with technical and vocational training among modern Indian youth. For decades, the societal narrative has tightly coupled career success and white-collar prestige exclusively with engineering, management, or traditional professional degrees. Apprenticeships are widely misperceived as a last-resort fallback for academic underachievers or low-income segments, carrying a heavy social stigma. Because these programs fail to offer the visible social mobility, corporate lifestyle allure, or digital-age prestige that Gen Z candidates actively seek, the youth naturally distance themselves from blue-collar or shop-floor training pathways.

Structural Bottlenecks within the NAPS Framework

Beyond individual candidate hesitation, NAPS suffers from rigid operational design flaws that stifle its effectiveness. The scheme enforces standardized, inflexible curriculum templates that fail to adapt to rapid technological disruptions like artificial intelligence and automation. This curriculum lag means candidates often invest months learning outdated industrial practices that bear little relevance to modern factory floors or corporate workplaces. Additionally, the scheme lacks robust, independent quality auditing mechanisms to monitor training execution. This absence of accountability allows substandard training centers to operate freely, diminishing the actual educational value delivered to the candidate.

Reimbursement Delays and Industry Hesitation

Furthermore, financial friction within the NAPS administrative pipeline severely dampens stakeholder enthusiasm. The mechanisms through which the government reimburses partial stipends to participating companies are plagued by bureaucratic red tape and prolonged processing timelines. For small-scale employers operating on tight liquidity, delayed payouts turn a supposedly incentivized scheme into a financial strain. This cash flow bottleneck, combined with complex onboarding compliances, actively discourages thousands of potential employers from participating, thereby shrinking the overall pool of quality opportunities available to youth.

Core Financial Disconnect

The primary barrier to enrollment is that fixed stipends have failed to keep pace with inflation and the rising cost of living. Apprenticeship pay frequently falls below local minimum wages. When young workers relocate from smaller towns to major industrial or Tier-1 hubs to take up these roles, the compensation fails to cover basic food, transport, and rent. Without built-in accommodation or travel support, pursuing an apprenticeship becomes financially unviable for lower-income applicants who must instead prioritize immediate, higher-paying retail or service work.

Deepening Exploitation and Dead-End Pathways

High dropout rates and declining completion metrics—which have fallen to 25.47% according to NITI Aayog—point to severe structural issues within corporate programs. Many candidates exit early after realizing that employers utilize them as low-cost, temporary workforce replacements rather than providing high-quality skill training. This frustration is compounded by long, complex corporate application processes, a general lack of career clarity, and the absence of a structured, guaranteed pathway translating the temporary training contract into a stable, full-time salaried job.

Cultural Bias and Alternative Skill Channels

Traditional academic paths and government exam preparation still hold massive social equity and prestige over vocational routes. Many parents and schools continue to push formal university degrees, causing youth to choose underemployment while studying for public sector exams rather than accepting a corporate apprenticeship. Simultaneously, the younger generation is turning to flexible alternative channels like short-term certifications, bootcamps, freelance networks, and creator-economy gigs, which offer rapid revenue without binding them to a rigid multi-year physical training contract.

Regional Gaps and Administrative Friction

Apprenticeship opportunities are highly concentrated, with just ten states accounting for over 80% of all engagements, leaving youth in regions like the North East or central India with few local choices. Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) widely avoid the ecosystem due to cumbersome regulatory compliance. Furthermore, digital fragmentation across separate platforms, such as NAPS for general trades and NATS for graduates or diploma holders, creates severe administrative friction and confusion for applicants seeking a streamlined process.

Overhaul Blueprint

To reverse this decline, policy frameworks from NITI Aayog suggest consolidating administrative efforts into a unified National Apprenticeship Mission. Reclaiming applicant trust requires repositioning these programs as prestigious, financially viable alternatives to traditional university education. This turnaround depends on significantly boosting stipend adequacy, offering formal social security or insurance, and actively funding travel and accommodation support for marginalized candidates.