Further, it has suggested Apprenticeship-Linked Incentive Scheme (ALIS) with incentives to promote apprenticeship engagement among aspirational districts, North East states, and for supporting women apprentices.
For apprentices and aspirants, the recommendations prioritize improving stipend adequacy and retention, facilitating travel and accommodation support, expanding insurance and social security coverage, strengthening early awareness and counselling systems, enabling international mobility and exposure and advancing women’s inclusion across sectors and geographies.
The Aayog also calls for relaxing thresholds to allow more businesses and a higher number of apprentices in all sectors. Under the existing Apprenticeship Act, 1961, all establishments with a workforce of 30 or more, including both regular and contractual employees, are mandated to engage apprentices ranging from 2.5% to 15% of their total manpower annually.
The recommendations are part of a comprehensive roadmap laid out by the Aayog in its report titled ‘Revitalising India’s Apprenticeship Ecosystem’ released on Friday.
“An emphasis on apprenticeships is necessary for developing a workforce capable of propelling India’s economic expansion,” the Aayog said.
Currently, the apprenticeship training in the country is imparted under two schemes, the National Apprenticeship Promotion Scheme (NAPS) under the administrative control of the ministry of skills development and entrepreneurship and the National Apprenticeship Training Scheme (NATS) under the ministry of education. At the policy and systemic level, the Aayog also recommended seamless mobility between education and skilling pathways, and formal alignment with National Credit Framework (NCrF) and National Education Policy (NEP) 2020.
On structure and governance, the report proposes the introduction of an Apprenticeship Engagement Index to benchmark performance; standardizing training and assessment protocols; strengthening post apprenticeship benefits, and accelerating adoption and upgradation of Industry 4.0 aligned ITIs.
“Promote a Startup Apprenticeship Programme (SAP); expand apprenticeships into the gig and platform economy; and reduce regulatory frictions that deter employer participation,” it said.
The report also underscores the need to build institutional capacity among training providers and intermediaries to deliver quality, demand-driven training.
Citing government data that shows India will have a youth population of approximately 345 million by 2036, the largest in the world, the Aayog reiterated India must ensure that its young population is equipped with the necessary skills, education, and employment opportunities.