New Delhi, Dec 26 Industry body India Energy Storage Alliance (IESA) and experts from across sectors on Friday called for faster skilling and employment reforms in 2026, saying India must move quickly to realise its potential as the world’s talent capital.
With the largest youth population globally and nearly 75 per cent of its people in the working-age group, experts believe India has a major opportunity if government, industry and academia work together more closely.
“The government has already laid a strong foundation through initiatives such as the National Education Policy 2020, the Skill India Mission and schemes like Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana,” experts said.
However, they stressed that implementation needs to be scaled up to meet rising demand.
“At present, just over 51 per cent of Indian youth are considered employable, while annual training capacity stands at around 4.3 million, far below the nearly 12 million people entering the workforce every year,” experts explained.
Highlighting concerns in the renewable energy sector, Debmalya Sen, President of IESA, said the industry is facing a serious skill shortage.
“The sector currently has a gap of nearly 1.2 million workers, and demand is expected to rise sharply, requiring around 1.7 million skilled professionals by 2027,” he noted.
Vinayak Walimbe of Customized Energy Solutions said India will need around 35 million green jobs by 2047.
“While industry-led efforts are underway, stronger government support is required, including mandatory green skills modules in technical education, industry-linked certification programmes and dedicated funding for sustainability-focused training institutes,” he mentioned.
Santosh Rudrawar of Sanjay Ghodawat Group said India’s retail sector, in particular, depends on empowering women, especially in rural areas.
“While government initiatives have helped, the sector now needs stronger training frameworks that prepare women for leadership roles, not just entry-level jobs,” Rudrawar stated.
Naman Jain of Silverline Prestige School said that while 2025 marked progress in education and skilling reforms, a major gap still exists between theory and practical skills.
"Although 2025 laid a transformative groundwork for India’s educational and skilling sector, backed by robust government initiatives, the skill gap that persists in the labour workforce demands a unique approach and reforms that prioritise skilling and upskilling,” Jain added.
Vinayak V. Bhosale of Sanjay Ghodawat University said technological changes driven by artificial intelligence, robotics and automation will transform nearly 40 per cent of core job skills by 2030.
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