The biennial WorldSkills competition, touted as the Olympics of Skills, is causing a churn amongst the young artisans of the country
The run-up to WorldSkills is long and tortuous. Over 12 months, Indian artisans negotiate through zonal/district, state and regional-level contests, and the winners compete at IndiaSkills, the national competition held in alternate years. In between these contests, they train at actual worksites in various cities, which have been organised by their sector skill councils and the sponsors.
The winners at IndiaSkills also get to travel to other countries where they participate in national contests. This year they were invited to compete at WorldSkills Asia in Abu Dhabi, WorldSkills Australia National Championship and WorldSkills Russia in Moscow. This exposure proved invaluable when they went to the Olympics of Skills to compete with the best in the world.
In 2019, the building and construction industry sent 12 of its champs to WorldSkills, Kazan. All of them are national champions in respective trades and have trained extensively under Indian and international experts and mentors. Most of them also had corporate sponsors, who put them into real-life work situations at worksites and factories to sync their theoretical and practical learning.
Talking to the Indian champs was an eye-opener. All of them come from very humble backgrounds, and many are the sole earners for their families. Yet, they have one thing in common – a burning desire for perfection in their work. Interestingly, while many of them are preparing to get back to industry after their recent return from Kazan, a few also dream of building a career as instructors so they can teach their trade to others.
As more and more artisans pass through the grind of competition, and learn how others across the world are working with their hands to make a living or build a career, a new breed of ‘handy-preneurs’ is emerging. These people have magic in their hands and can create just about anything they set their minds to.
We present you the champions from building & construction and retail sectors who represented India at WorkSkills 2019.
Amit Yadav, 22 years
Trade – Concrete Construction Work | Skill Council – Construction SSC
Holder of Dipl. in Civil Engineering, hails from Badohi, UP. Was sponsored by L&T for 1.5-year training for IndiaSkills competition. Also trained at Moscow for 28 days. His training has taken him to construction sites in Mysore, Chennai and Mumbai. Aims to be a trainer for the industry.
Dharavat Naresh
Trade – Concrete Construction Work | Skill Council – Construction SSC
Belongs to farmer family of Warangal, Telangana. Was sponsored by L&T for 1-year training for Indiaskills. On 4th day of WorldSkills at Kaizaan, he had an unfortunate fall and could not complete his task. Undeterred from this setback, he is now determined to train others so they can excel at the world competition. Has trained extensively on Festool equipment, and is also a qualified carpenter. Currently pursuing Dipl. in Civil Engineering; aims to become an instructor.
Medallion of Excellence
Mohammed Rabith K, 22 years
Trade – Wall and Floor Tiling | Skill Council – Construction SSC
Belongs to a family of porters. Pursuing Dipl. In Electronics, currently in 2nd year. Trained for IndiaSkills and WorldSkills with CREDAI Kushal at Pune
Also Read: Setting a New Skilling Standard
Medallion of Excellence
Md. Ramjan Momin, 22 years
Trade – Bricklaying | Skill Council – Construction SSC
Hails from a labourer family of remote West Bengal village; currently lives in Noida with his wife. Joined ATS Infrastructure as mistry; the company sponsored his training for IndiaSkills. Currently drawing Rs 15k, expecting to earn Rs 30k as supervisor.
Raji Reddy Methuku
Trade – Plastering & Drywall Systems | Skill Council – Construction SSC
Hails from Telengana, belongs to a farmer family. Dropped out of college midway due to financial constraint, worked at a petrol pump. Underwent 90-days training in plastering at NSDC, worked at interior design company Decorhome as a supervisor, at sites in Hyderabad, Mumbai. Sponsored by St Gobain Gyproc to train for WorldSkills, currently working as supervisor and demonstrator. Earning Rs 30k, may work in Abu Dhabi. First-time Indian participation at WorldSkills for this trade.
Vaibhav S Raut, 21 years
Trade – Electrical Installations | Skill Council – Electronics SSC
Dipl in Electricals, now pursuing graduation (distance); hails from Boisar, a small village in Maharashtra. Working as lab instructor at Rustomjee Academy for Global Careers for three years, teaches fundamentals of electricals. Wants to get into the industry; learn BMS, home automation, industrial controls, other latest applications of electrical circuitry. Expects to earn `30k per month. Trained at Schneider for competitions, has been to Abu Dhabi, Australia, Russia.
Also Read: Plumbing Council to Train Sales & Mktg Execs, Factory Workers
Keshar Singh Rajput
Trade – Cabinet Making | Skill Council – Furniture & Fittings SSC
Belongs to a farmer’s family, hails from Udaipur, Rajasthan. Was trained at Iraj Evolution Design Co, Udaipur under the mentorship of WorldSkills cabinet making expert Ashok Jangir and WorldSkills 2017 alumni Anant Kumar.
Vikash Kumar Naga
Trade – Joinery | Skill Council – Furniture & Fittings SSC
Belongs to carpenter family of Sikar, Rajasthan; pursuing B. Voc in Carpentry from BSDU Jaipur. Wants to pursue masters. At BSDU, has learnt design, planning & execution, for all-round understanding of work processes. Mentored by WorldSkills joinery expert Narendra Singh Rathore, and Worldskills 2013 joinery gold medallist from Switzerland – Prisco Egli. Has interned at Iraj Evolution Design Co, Udaipur. Before discovering a passion for carpentry, studied electricals, automotive and welding.
Gold Medalist
S. Aswatha Narayana, 25 years
Trade – Water Technology (added in 2017) | Skill Council – Green Jobs
B. Tech in Electronics and Instrumentation from C V Raman College of Engineering, Bhubaneshwar. Interested in automation, environmental sustainability. This trade requires an understanding of water treatment, water supply systems (piping), automation, environmental scenarios. WorldSkills challenge involved testing water sample, prescribing dosage for plant, sample disposal, fixing faulty pump & piping system in a virtual treatment plant. Award of Excellence in Industrial Automation training, 1st in Automated Robotics event (state level) held at IIIT Bhubaneswar, 2nd in DrishTI – Online Contest in Circuit Design & Digital Signal Processing, Texas Instruments.
Also Read: An Industry Devoid of Skills is not Sustainable: BJP MP Meenakashi Lekhi
Medallion of Excellence
Ankit Anand, 23 years
Trade – Visual Merchandising | Skill Council – Retail SSC
Hails from Gopalganj, Bihar. Currently pursuing 4-yr B Des (Fashion Communication) from NIFT Bangalore. Trained with Pearl Academy Mumbai, BSDU Jaipur (props), Berger Paints Kolkata (painting, vinyl). Can guide vendors on comprehensive VM solutions. Looking forward to a package of Rs 8-10 lakh p a.
Himanshu Vohra
Trade – Plumbing and Heating | Skill Council – Plumbing SSC
Final year civil engineering student from Chitkara University. Has participated in Global Skills Competition in Australia, and has undergone 20-day training with experts from Finland
Sahil Kapil
Trade – Painting & Decorating (new trade at Worldskills) | Skill Council – Paints and Coating SSC
Pursuing post-graduation in Fine Arts from Govt College of Arts, Chandigarh; aims to complete PhD. Participated in competitions at Abu Dhabi, Australia, Russia. Also adept at textile design, digital arts such as character design, 3D, gaming art, etc. He has designed illustrations for Punjab Government and ITBP Police. Recipient of Satish Gujral Award 2019 for outstanding work in painting.
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