NCVET to set up research division for evidence-based skill regulations

THe subject Council for Vocational grooming and Training (NCVET), the apex of the sun's way regulator for skilling and vocational training under the Union ministry of skill development and entrepreneurship (MSDE), will establish a dedicated research division within the council to strengthen evidence-based regulations, officials aware of the details said on Tuesday.The general body of NCVET, in its first meeting held at Kaushal Bhawan, New Delhi on Monday, approved the proposal to establish a dedicated research division, which will function as a think tank to conduct research on labour market trends, qualification relevance, system performance and policy innovation, supporting future skills planning and regulatory reforms. At present, research on vocational education, labour markets, and qualification systems remains largely fragmented, project-specific, and dispersed across various institutions.The NCVET general body is the apex governing and decision-making body of the council, and it is headed by minister of state (Independent Charge) for skill development and entrepreneurship Jayant Chaudhary.“While NCVET has been entrusted with regulatory and quality assurance mandates for skill and vocational education, the establishment of a dedicated research division would further strengthen its capacity to generate empirical evidence, assess system performance, and provide continuous, data-driven policy support. The research division within NCVET will serve as the apex institutional framework and think tank for research, analysis, and technical support in the skill development,” the proposal said.According to officials, the detailed structure of the division will be finalised in line with government norms, following a review of comparable divisions in other government bodies and consultations with relevant stakeholders.An MSDE official said the key mandates of the proposed division is to institutionalise research and development in skill development, qualifications, training quality and labour market trends; strengthen data-driven, evidence-based decision-making and policy design through monitoring, evaluation and impact assessments; and establish knowledge exchange networks for research collaboration with national and international organisations.“A research advisory committee (RAC), composed of sectoral experts and members from the relevant government organisations, industries and academia will be constituted, as per the requirement from time to time. The roles and responsibilities of this committee is to work towards strategic interventions,” the official said, requesting not to be named.Harshil Sharma, who holds a PhD in labour economics from Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) and has worked with the governments of Delhi, Odisha and Maharashtra on designing skilling programmes, said positioning NCVET as a think tank for labour market trends, qualification relevance, and system performance can significantly strengthen regulatory decisions, accreditation norms, and future skills planning.“For the NCVET research division to realise its full potential, it must go beyond reliance on secondary data such as periodic labour force surveys, limited employer studies and fragmented sectoral research. A key priority should be to design and champion a national skilling and skills-demand survey aligned with NCVET’s regulatory mandate and evolving labour market needs. Robust primary data would directly inform qualification design, assessment standards and accreditation decisions, enabling the division to bridge policy, regulation and on-ground realities in India’s skilling ecosystem,” he said.