Vi Foundation, TSSC Launch IoT Centre Of Excellence To Bridge Skills Gap
In a bid to prepare India's youth for the digital economy of the future, Vi Foundation, the CSR arm of leading telecom operator Vi (Vodafone Idea), in partnership with the Telecom Sector Skill Council (TSSC), has commenced its first batch of about 40 students who successfully completed the IoT (Internet of Things) Centre of Excellence programme at Indira Gandhi Delhi Technical University for Women (IGDTUW) in Delhi.
This initiative comes at a time when technology-driven industries, including 5G, AI/ML, and IoT, are poised to influence global employment. For the upcoming second batch of the IoT Centre of Excellence, the course received a response of more than 300 students wanting to register, stated the statement by the company.
The Vi Foundation's IoT Centre of Excellence, established in July this year, aims to bridge the gap between industry demands and skill requirements, as conveyed by the foundation. It intends to address the urgent need for a future-ready workforce in India's fast-evolving digital landscape.
The centre offers a blended approach to training, combining online instruction, self-paced content, and practical training on-campus at IGDTUW. The curriculum focuses on six key IoT applications: smart lighting, smart environmental weather monitoring, smart agriculture, smart water quality monitoring, smart health monitoring, and energy monitoring.
Speaking on the occasion, P Balaji, Director of Vi Foundation and Chief Regulatory and Corporate Affairs Officer at VIL, emphasised the critical role of partnerships in creating an ecosystem for youth to thrive in the digital era.
He highlighted, "The Government of India has clearly outlined a USD 1 trillion digital contribution over the next few years. This fast-evolving landscape offers our youth enormous employment opportunities especially with the internet economy, digitization and emerging technologies such as IoT, creating innovation and opening new frontiers for their career paths. With the IoT Centre of Excellence, our aim is to skill the youth in new technologies to drive innovation and propel India's digital transformation."
K K Dwivedi, Additional Secretary of the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, commended the Vi Foundation and TSSC for their collaboration in establishing the IoT Centre of Excellence.
Dwivedi stressed, "With India's global digital prominence and transformation with 5G, there will be a need to bridge the gap in the workforce, especially with new technological changes. We anticipate similar initiatives in diverse sectors, preparing our youth for the digital job market. A partnership-led model like this addresses the urgent need for skilled professionals in the ever-evolving telecom as well as technology sectors, particularly with the advent of new technologies such as 5G and IoT."
One of the students expressing her interest in the IoT course conveyed, "I would say that of all the IoT skills I acquired, the smart healthcare one stands out as a game changer as IoT in healthcare can enhance its quality and accessibility. The course comprises a module on energy monitoring systems. This system motivates me to develop a sense of responsibility towards a sustainable future."
Arvind Bali, CEO of the Telecom Sector Skill Council, congratulated the first batch of students who completed the IoT course and commended their enthusiasm for upskilling. Whereas, Amita Dev, Vice Chancellor of IGDTUW, highlighted the significance of partnerships like these in promoting women's empowerment in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) education.
