Bengaluru, March 18
Bengaluru-based software-as-a-service firm BetterPlace aims to upskill over a lakh frontline workers job-ready by 2025 in the state of Uttar Pradesh.
A minimum of 25 per cent of this intended aim would be women.
The SaaS firm has signed an MoU with the Department of Vocational Education, Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, Uttar Pradesh.
Citing a survey report conducted by CIIE.CO, BetterPlace said about 52 per cent of frontline workers today find it challenging to upskill themselves and get a new job.
It argued that this lack of opportunity for upskilling can majorly impact the economy over the long term, leading to the under-utilisation of human capital in India.
Founded in 2015, BetterPlace said it has upskilled over 3.4 million people on its platform in the last three years.
Pravin Agarwala, Group CEO and Co-founder, of BetterPlace, said the firm's core priority since the beginning has been to improve opportunities, increase employee competencies and widen the work horizons for the frontline workforce in India.
"We are thrilled to further this vision with the UP Government and work collectively under a four-step approach of identifying the skill gaps, tailoring comprehensive training programmes to address the same, evaluating the effectiveness of the programme, and assisting with job placements for the programme participants," said Agarwala.
"I believe that by upgrading themselves with the current and future job needs via holistic initiatives like this, more and more frontline workers will be able to become empowered providers for their families, and in turn benefit from the overall development happening in India," he added.
Soon after the MoU was signed, M Devraj, Principal Secretary, Vocational Education and Skill Development Department, Government of Uttar Pradesh said partnering with an industry leader like BetterPlace, will only enable us to accelerate our journey towards eventually making all our citizens upskilled and job-ready.
"This initiative is poised to chart out the economic development of Uttar Pradesh by supplying a pool of skilled individuals who can meet the demands of various industries and is part of the roadmap to make Uttar Pradesh a trillion-dollar economy," Devraj added.