MSDE and Assam Sign MoU for Skill India International Centre

The Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) held a programme on skilling for international mobility and PM-SETU at Guwahati, with the tourism and hospitality sector as its special focus. Senior officials of the Union and Assam governments, industry representatives and the wider skilling ecosystem took part. PM-SETU is the Pradhan Mantri Skilling and Employability Transformation through Upgraded ITIs, the scheme under which Industrial Training Institutes are being remade with industry taking the lead.

The agreements exchanged

A Memorandum of Understanding was exchanged between the Ministry and the Government of Assam for setting up a Skill India International Centre (SIIC). Letters of Intent were signed for two ITI clusters, at Jorhat and Tinsukia, which will be supported by Numaligarh Refinery Limited and Oil India Limited respectively under the PM-SETU scheme. Officials described this as a milestone in drawing industry into the vocational education and training system of the region.

Who spoke

Jayant Chaudhary, Minister of State with independent charge for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship and Minister of State for Education, gave the keynote address. He said India's strength lies in the aspirations and the capability of its young people, and that PM-SETU is meant to turn Industrial Training Institutes into modern, demand-driven institutions ready for the work of the future. Biswajit Daimary, the Assam minister for skills, employment and entrepreneurship, sports and youth welfare, handloom, textiles and sericulture, and indigenous and tribal faith and culture, said the state's priority is to equip its young people with the right skills and exposure for the emerging global economy. Manasi Sahay Thakur, Joint Secretary in the Ministry, set the context, and the chief executive of the Tourism and Hospitality Skill Council spoke on the sector's potential in the region.

What was discussed

• Aligning skill development courses with industry demand, international standards and global workforce mobility
• Opportunities in tourism and hospitality, where demand for trained professionals is rising in Indian and overseas markets
• International mobility and WorldSkills as routes for young people from the North-East
• Assam's own CM FLIGHT Scheme and its plan for a Global Skill Center

Why it matters

The gathering, held as the Northeast Tourism and Hospitality Skill Conclave 2026, was run with support from the National Skill Development Corporation and the Tourism and Hospitality Skill Council. It ties the skilling infrastructure of the North-Eastern Region to two large public sector energy companies, gives Assam a centre meant to prepare workers for jobs abroad, and places tourism and hospitality at the centre of the region's plan for employment.