While the number of Covid-19 cases in India is on an upward trend, the number of missed opportunities for the youth is also on a rise; especially with the number of educational hours being lost owing to the lockdown. Consequently, the hopes and dreams of many of our rural youth to undergo training at the Skill and Entrepreneurship Development Institutes (SEDI) seemed at a standstill. But as we say, there is always light at the end of the tunnel. In recent times, the SEDI staff and trainers have adapted to a new skill training model, using modern communication tools to reach out to the students.

Zoom & Google Meet being the new modes of communication in most organisations, the SEDI team has been shifting focus from classroom training to online training. The training model has been changed to theoretical training through online mechanisms, and practical training will be provided once the lockdown is lifted. This move has been explained to the parents and students through mobilizers and online parent-teacher meetings.

Challenges have also risen. Many trainees do not own laptops or computers or may have low bandwidth issues. To address this, trainers have offered to record their sessions and send the videos via WhatsApp or other mediums of communication. For those who do not even own smartphones, an approach to reach out to the neighbour or nearest training staff for help has been opted.

Assessment of these sessions is also being carried out on a weekly basis to track the progress of the students and to understand if this mechanism is successful. Apart from skill training, training in computers, soft skills and English speaking is also being provided as part of the training syllabus.

The SEDI team has also been engaging with placement partners to understand their recruitment strategy and partnership needs.