New Delhi, Dec. 14: The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) felicitated the medal winners of 7th International Abilympics, Shizuoku, Japan at a ceremony here on Wednesday.

India had won three silver, one bronze and one special prize in the event held in Japan from November 13 – 18, 2007 .

In the felicitation ceremony as part of the International Conclave on Skills Development, Union Minister of State for Human Resource Development, D Purandeswari, said that persons with disabilities have brought pride to the nation which normal people have not been able to do.

The Minister said that 10,000 additional vocational schools will be opened in the 11th Five Year Plan to support the skill development initiative of the government.

Corporate sector needs to step up to center-stage to ensure the success of Public-Private-Partnership (PPP) in setting up the new vocational schools, she said.

On the young population of India, Purandeswari said that there are challenges in reaping the demographic dividend and India should ensure that this dividend should not become a bane from boon. Agriculture, manufacturing, construction and retail will create most jobs in the future, informed the Minister. The skill development initiatives should keep these sectors in focus along with IT and food processing sector, she added.

High growth rate is always supported by high capital stock and India has human capital to expedite the economic growth, Ms. Parandeswari said. India is a knowledge economy which calls for greater responsibility and success of telecom sector should be emulated in other sectors also, she added.

Dr. Bhalchandra Mungekar, Member, Planning Commission, informed that 11th Five Year Plan has a provision to create 70 million new jobs and invited industry to support government to execute the same. He said that the Government is drafting National Skill Development Mission with the support of industry and asked CII to submit a draft report on its recommendation buy end of December 2008.

Dr. Mungekar said that issues of poverty and employment generation can be solved by skill development. India should also find ways to ensure woman empowerment, he added.

Partnership is required between employability and education; industry and the Government and between the countries said Vijay Thadani, Chairman, CII Education Committee and CEO, NIIT Ltd. Seamlessness should be brought in the education system and skill should be the criteria of identity, he said. Lifelong learning should be promoted to make India stronger in the world skill stage, added Thadani.

Dr. Uma Tuli, Founder and Managing Secretary, Amar Jyoti Foundation appreciated CII's effort in skill development and support to Indian Contingent for the 7th International Abilympics and termed the organisation as 'caring institution that inspires'. She said that industry and other organisations with convergence of resources can bring the disabled to the mainstream.

Manfred Haebig, Programme Director, Promotion of Industrial Services and Employment (PISE), German Technical Cooperation – GTZ, presented the possibilities of Indo-German cooperation in the area of skill development and ensured involvement in skill development as a permanent PPP, development of training markets and institutionalised research and counseling.

Lt Gen S S Mehta (Retd), Director General, CII said that we have to find a mechanism to exercise skill as a collateral and open a skill bank for the purpose. Private companies should come together to create a pool of resource to facilitate the skill bank for the country. India needs a decentralised scale of delivery mechanism by creating a National Skill Development Foundation, said Lt. Gen Mehta. (ANI)