Complete Thesis

Impact of iLEAD as a Livelihood Strategy for Rural Youth.
Dissertation submitted to the Central University of Bihar
in partial fulfilment of the course work in Masters in Development Studies
PULKESH PULAK
Under the Guidance and Supervision of
DR. RAJESHWAR MISHRA
CENTRAL UNIVERSITY OF BIHAR
SCHOOL OF SOCIAL SCIENCES AND POLICY
CENTRE FOR DEVELOPMENT STUDIES
PATNA 800014
INDIA
Table of contents
TOPIC PAGE NO.
Acknowledgement ……………………………………………………………… i
Abstract ………………………………………………………………………… ii
List of Maps………………………………………………………………….…. v
List of Tables …………………………………………………………………… vi
List of Figures ………………………………………………………………….. vi
List of Acronyms………………………………………………………….…..... vii-viii
1: Introduction 01-26
1.1 : Background………………………………………………………………. 02-18

1.2 : Aim……………………………………………………………………….. 19-19
1.3 : Objective…………………………………………………………………. 19-19
1.4 : Research Question……………………………………………………….. 19-19
1.5 : Rationale…………………………………………………………………. 20-22
1.6 : Structure of the thesis report……………………………………………... 23-24
1.7 : Scope and limitation……………………………………………………… 25-26
2. Literature Review 27-40
2.1: Who are Rural Youth? ................................................................................ 28-30

2.2: Key features of Rural Youth Livelihoods………………………………… 30-31
2.3: The Concept of Livelihood and Livelihood Strategies…………………… 32-34
2.4: Youth and Livelihoods……………………………………………………. 34-40
3. Methodology 41-50
3.1: Context of the Research………………………………………………….. 42-47

3.2: Sampling………………………………………………………………….. 48-48
3.3: Research Tools……………………………………………………………. 48-50
3.4: Procedure of collecting Data……………………………………………... 50-50
3.5: Analysis…………………………………………………………………… 50-50
4. iLEAD Patna Centre 51-80
4.1: Patna iLEAD- a look……………………………………………………… 52-54

4.2: Case Studies………………………………………………………………. 55-74
4.3: Analysis of Case Studies………………………………………………….. 75-80
5. Conclusion, recommendation, suggestions 81-85
5.1: Conclusion………………………………………………………………… 82-83
iii
5.2: Recommendations & Suggestions………………………………………… 83-85
References
iv
List of Maps
TOPIC PAGE NO.
Map 3.1.1: Aide-et-Action International Presence…………………………….. 42
Map 3.1.2: Aide-et-Action International Presence (projects & offices)………. 44
Map 3.1.3: District Map of Patna……………………………………………… 45
Map 3.1.4: Map of iLEAD centres in India…………………………………… 47
v
List of Tables
TOPIC PAGE NO.
Table 4.2.1: Impact on trainees………………………………………………. 80
List of Figures
TOPIC PAGE NO.
Fig. 1.1: Improving Livelihood the iLEAD way………………………….. 18
Fig. 3.2.1: Distribution of Case Studies Trade Wise………………………… 48
Fig. 3.2.2: Distribution of Case Studies Gender Wise………………………. 48
Fig. 4.2.1: Education of Respondents……………………………………….. 77
Fig. 4.2.2: Respondent’s Sect……………………………………………….. 77
Fig. 4.2.3: Family Size of the Respondents…………………………………. 78
Fig. 4.2.4: Family Income Status before & after iLEAD…………………... 79
Fig. 4.2.5: Impact on Industry……………………………………………….. 80
vi
List of Acronyms
AeA- Aide-et-Action
BTC- Bodoland Territorial Council
CII- Confederation of Indian Industry
CMD- Community Mobilisation Drive
CSR- Corporate Social Responsibility
EPA- Employability Potential Assessment
GDP- Gross Domestic Product
GGB-Green Grain Bank
iLEAD- Institute for Livelihood Education and Development
IDR- International Development Report
IYY- International Year of Youth
ITeS- Information Technology enabled Services
ITI- Industrial Training Institute
LABS- Livelihood Advanced Business Schools
LMIS - Labour Market Information System
MIS- Managament Information System
NABARD - National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development

vii
NCVT- National Council of Vocational Training
NGO- Non- Governmental Organisation
PCMA- Patient Care & Medical Assistance
PARFI - Pan IIT Reach for India
PoA- Programme of Action
RUDSETI- Rural Development and Self- Employment Training Institutes
SGSY- Swarnajayanti Gram Swarojgar Yojana
SGRY- Sampoorna Grameen Rojgaar Yojana
SHG- Self- Help Groups
TRYSEM- Training for Rural Youth for Self Employment
UN- United Nations
viii
Abstract
This study deals with the impact of iLEAD project on livelihood for rural youth. This project
provides free placement-based training to them which is the large part of the population of
India. Due to poverty and lack of opportunities this section of population drops-out from
school and gets engaged in the unorganised sector with very low salary. Apart from this some
of them just become a burden on their families. iLEAD in Bihar has trained 5395 candidates
and placed 4536 (2008-upto December 2010). The unskilled and unemployed youths who are
considered as social and economic liabilities, are being transformed into resourceful assets
through short term skill trainings and thereby converting them into socially and economically
productive units.
ii
Acknowledgment
First of all, I would like to extend my gratitude and thanks to my dissertation guide and
mentor Dr. Rajeshwar Mishra for believing in my work and me. This dissertation would not
have been possible without his agreeing to guide me with his constant support, interest and
long-lasting discussion that were critical inputs on analysis and recommendations. Many
thanks to Ms Sheema Fatima who suggested me to take this study as my Master’s
dissertation.
Sincere thanks to Mr. Sreedhar Mether, Regional Manager, Aide-et-Action (AeA) to provide
valuable information and the staffs for providing me with immense support and data. I also
acknowledge my sincere gratitude to Mr. Mihir Mohanty, Program Manager, AeA and Mrs.
Surbhi Srivastava for their humble support. I would also like to thank the teachers and
students of iLEAD Patna Centre for their co-operation, patience and support during data
collection.
I would like to mention special thanks to Rakhi, Mohit and Rajesh for their perpetual support
and encouragement.
Now, last but not the least, special gratitude to my family, without their encouragement this
work would not have been possible.
Pulkesh Pulak
CUB, April 2011
i
…Livelihood Strategy for Rural Youths
1. Introduction
Pulkesh Pulak | CUB0901014019/DISSERTATION/DS 1

1.1 Background
Youth- Asset for the country
There are more than a billion young people in the world of which 850 million live in poor
countries. The largest proportion of the world‘s poor youth in the age group of 15-24 years
(as per WHO definition) live in Asia.
The unprecedented opportunity for Skill Development arises from a unique 25-year window
of opportunity, called India‘s demographic dividend. The Demographic dividend consists of
three elements of demographic trends fortuitously coinciding at a time when the economy is
growing at 9% plus: (i) a declining birth rate means fewer people will be joining the
workforce in coming years, than in previous years, (ii) a very slow improvement in life-
expectancy around 63/64 years of age means an ageing population surviving fewer years after
superannuation than in other countries, (iii) the baby-boomers generation having now crossed
the age of 20, the demographic bulge is occurring at the age bracket of 15–29. All these
trends combine to result in India having world‘s youngest workforce with a median age way
below China and OECD countries. This would mean that dependency ratio, that is, the ratio
of non-working population to working population will continue to be low, giving India a
comparative cost advantage over others, for another 25–30 years. By that time the
demographic bulge in India would be also reaching the age of superannuation, and India will
also be joining the league of ageing economies. (Planning Commission, 2008)
It is expected that the ageing economy phenomenon will globally create a skilled manpower
shortage of approximately 56.5 million by 2020 and if we can get our skill development act
right, we could have a skilled manpower surplus of approximately 47 million (NSSO
Survey). In an increasingly connected world, where national frontiers are yielding to cross-

border outsourcing, it is not inconceivable that within a decade we can become a global
reservoir of skilled person power. The criticality of Skill Development in our overall strategy
is that if we get our skill development act right, we will be harnessing ‗demographic
dividend‘; if we do not get there, we could be facing a ‗demographic nightmare‘. (Planning
Commission, 2008)
The youth bulge creates a demographic window of opportunity in which economies can
benefit from a majority of individuals entering their productive peak, while the share of the
population that is very young and the elderly still remains fairly small. The relative rise in the
labour supply creates possibilities for enhanced growth through a rise in output per capita
coupled with higher savings and investment from workers. Similarly, the large working age
population holds out the potential for increased consumption or income taxes that can in turn
be used to finance productive investments such as additional education, health, or social
protection. As the population ages, this productivity window begins to close as dependency
ratios rise, reducing income growth and taxes but increasing pressure to spend on the elderly.
Some countries have successfully taken advantage of young populations, particularly in East
Asia where between 25 and 40 per cent of the rapid growth that took place between 1965 and
1990 in Japan, Hong Kong (China), the Republic of Korea, and Singapore has been attributed
to the higher growth of the working age population. The potential exists to reap tremendous
benefits from ensuring that youth have the health, skills and social capital to productively
contribute to growth.
If youth are not productively absorbed into economies, there will be increased
unemployment, lower productivity and growth, and perhaps greater risks of conflict and

violence. If investments are not made in youth, however, there is risk that the youth bulge
may manifest itself as a drain on growth and society, rather than a dividend.
Government Initiatives
With the growth in the Indian economy, there are many sectors that have opened new
opportunities for the youth. However, 90 per cent of the prime aged persons in the Indian
workforce are employed in the low productivity informal sector jobs. Due to the barriers in
the entry of unskilled persons in the formal sector, investing in the skill development of the
youth is the critical need.
In India, skill acquisition takes place through two basic structural streams—a small formal
one and a large informal one. The formal structure includes: (i) higher technical education
imparted through professional colleges, (ii) vocational education in schools at the post-
secondary stage, (iii) technical training in specialized institutions, and (iv) apprenticeship
training. A number of agencies impart vocational education/training a various levels. Higher
professional and technical education, primarily in the areas of agriculture, education,
engineering and technology, and medicine, is imparted through various professional
institutions.
There are seventeen ministries and departments of Government of India which are imparting
vocational training to about 3.1 million persons every year. Most of these are national level
efforts and individually they are able to reach a very small part of the new entrants to the
labour force. Even collectively, they provide training to about 20% of the number of annual
additions to the labour force. Each ministry/department in charge of subject sets up training
establishments in its field of specialization. Vocational training being a concurrent subject,

Central Government and the State Governments share responsibilities. At the national level,
Director General of Employment & Training (DGE&T), Ministry of Labour is the nodal
department for formulating policies, laying down standards, conducting trade testing and
certification, etc. in the field of vocational training. At the State level, the State Government
departments are responsible for vocational training programmes.
There are 1244 polytechnics under the aegis of the Ministry of Human Resource
Development with a capacity of over 2.95 lakh offering three-year diploma courses in various
branches of engineering with an entry qualification of 10th pass. Besides, there are 415
institutions for diploma in pharmacy, 63 for hotel management, and 25 for architecture. There
are about 5114 Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) imparting training in 57 engineering and
50 non-engineering trades. Of these, 1896 are State Government-run ITIs while 3218 are
private. The total seating capacity in these ITIs is 7.42 lakh (4 lakh seats in government ITIs
and the remaining 3.42 lakh in private ITIs). These courses are open to those who have
passed either Class 8 or 10 depending on the trade and are of 1 or 2 years duration, which
varies from course to course. In addition to ITIs, there are six Advanced Training Institutes
(ATI) run by the Central Government which provide training for instructors in ATIs for
electronics and process instrumentation, offering long and short courses for training of skilled
personnel at technician level in the fields of industrial, medical, and consumer electronics and
process instrumentation. Under the aegis of the Ministry of Rural development, banks and
Non-Governmental Organizations, through 2500 Rural Development and Self- Employment
Training Institutes (RUDSETI), have undertaken entrepreneurship and skill building of the
rural youth for self-employment in areas with a pre-existing market for the goods/services
produced, with a reported success rate of 70%. The Entrepreneurship Development Initiative
(EDI) and other programmes of the Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises train
about one lakh persons a year.

The unorganized sector which constitutes about 93% of the workforce is not supported by
any structural system of acquiring or upgrading skills. By and large, skill formation takes
place through informal channels like family occupations, on the job training under master
craftsmen with no linkages to the formal education training and certification. Training needs
in this sector are highly diverse and multi skill-oriented. Many efforts for imparting training
through Swarnjayanti Gram Swarojgar Yojana (SGSY), PMRY, KVIC, Krishi Vigyan
Kendra (KVK) and Jan Shiksha Sansthan (JSS) are in place but the outcome is not
encouraging.
RECENT INITIATIVES FOR SKILL DEVELOPMENT
A. Institutional arrangement
A three tier institutional structure consisting of Prime Minister‟s National Council on Skill
Development, Skill Development Co-ordination Board and National Skill Development
Corporation has been set up to take forward the skill development agenda.
PM’s National Council on Skill Development has been set up as an apex body for policy
advice, direction and review. The Council is chaired by PM with Ministers for Human
Resource Development, Finance, Heavy Industry, Rural Development, Housing and Urban
Poverty Alleviation, Labour and Employment and Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises as
members. Deputy Chairman, Planning Commission, Chairperson of the National
Manufacturing Competitiveness Council, Chairperson of National Skill Development
Corporation and six experts in the area of skill development are other members. Principal
Secretary to the PM is the Member Secretary of the Council.

The PM‟s Council has endorsed the vision to create 500 million skilled people by 2022
through skill development system which must have high degree of inclusivity in terms of
gender, rural/urban, organized/unorganized, and traditional/contemporary.
National Skill Development Co-ordination Board has been set up under the Chairmanship
of Deputy Chairman of Planning Commission with Secretaries of Ministries of Human
Resource Development, Labour and Employment, Rural Development, Housing and Urban
Poverty Alleviation and Finance as members. Secretaries of four States by rotation for a
period of two years, three distinguished academicians/subject area specialists are other
members. Secretary, Planning Commission is Member Secretary of the Board. The Board is
expected to enumerate the strategies to implement the decisions of the Prime Minister‘s
National Council on Skill Development and create comprehensive guidelines and instructions
for meeting the larger objectives of skill development.
National Skill Development Corporation: The third tier of the co-ordinated action is the
National Skill Development Corporation which is a non-profit company under the Companies
Act, 1956 with an appropriate governance structure. The Head of the Corporation is a person
of eminence/reputed professional in the field of skill development. The Corporation would
constitute Sector Skills Councils with the following functions:
a) Identification of skill development needs including preparing a catalogue of types of skills,
range and depth of skills to facilitate individuals to choose from them.
b) Development of a sector skill development plan and maintain skill inventory.
c) Determining skills/competency standards and qualifications.
d) Standardization of affiliation and accreditation process.
e) Participation in affiliation, accreditation, examination and certification

f) Plan and execute Training of Trainers
g) Promotion of academies of excellence
h) Establishment of a well-structured sector specific Labour Market Information
System(LMIS) to assist planning and delivery of training.
B. Up gradation of 1896 Government Industrial Training Institutes(ITIs)
1. There were 1896 Government ITIs as on 1st January 2007 and it has been decided to
modernize/upgrade all of them.
100 ITIs were taken up for upgradation in 2005-06 at a cost of Rs. 160 crore into Centres of
Excellence. 21 new courses in production & manufacturing, hospitality, automobile,
electrical, electronics, construction, information technology, industrial automation,
refrigeration and air conditioning have been introduced in order to meet the requirement of
these sectors.
Up gradation of 400 ITIs through World Bank assisted Vocational Training Improvement
Project was undertaken in 2006-07 at a cost of Rs. 1581 crore. New courses have been
introduced in these ITIs and Institute Management Committees have been constituted to seek
closer involvement of industry in skill development. These ITIs are under different stages of
modernization.
Remaining 1396 Government ITIs are being upgraded at a cost of Rs. 3550 crore. Under the
scheme, an interest free loan of Rs. 2.5 crore is granted to each ITI. The upgradation is
carried out by Institute Management Committee which is headed by an Industrialist. In the
last three years, 900 ITIs have been taken up which are at different stages of modernization.

C. Skill Development Initiative:
A new scheme was started in 2007-08 with an objective to train one million persons in short
term modular courses in five years at a cost of Rs. 550 crore and then one million every year
thereafter. Under the scheme, 1110 short term modular courses have already been developed.
These courses cover 49 sectors and range from 60 hours to 960 hours. Training is being
imparted through 5249 Vocational Training Providers and competencies of trainees assessed
by 22 independent assessing bodies. On the basis of their assessment, National Council for
Vocational Training Certificate is awarded to the trainees.
National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD)
The National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) has recently
launched a pilot project in association with the Pan IIT Reach for India (PARFI) to establish
20 Gurukuls across the country for providing vocational training to rural poor (mostly school
drop outs from villages) with an assurance of employment after the training. The cost of
customized training for 5-6 weeks is covered by way of a micro loan (Rs. 6000-7000) with an
interest of 8.5% per annum and repayable from the salary of trainees on employment. The
loan is also linked to a Self Help Group (SHG) where the mother/wife of the trainee is a
member to have a peer pressure on staying with the employer and repay the loans. The
interest earned from the loan is used for meeting the expenses of Micro Finance Institutions
(MFIs)/NGOs who are involved in identifying the trainees and ensuring prompt repayment of
the loan on employment. The employment opportunities are negotiated with corporate entities
in advance by PARFI (e.g. Hyundai Motors for welders, etc.).
The quantitative dimension of the Skill Development challenge can be estimated by the
following:

• 80% of new entrants to workforce have no opportunity for skill training. Against 12.8
million per annum new entrants to the workforce the existing training capacity is 3.1 million
per annum.
• about 2% of existing workforce has skill training against 96% in Korea, 75% in Germany,
80% in Japan, and 68% in the United Kingdom.
The NSS 61st Round Survey on Employment and Unemployment indicates that educational
institutions attendance rates (5– 14 years) drop by nearly half in the age group 15–19 years
and by 86% after the age 15 years. Labour force participation rates rise sharply after the age
of 14 years and reach close to 100% at the age of 25–29 years. The said results also reflect
that 38.8% of the Indian labour force is illiterate, 24.9% of the labour force has had schooling
up to the primary level and the balance 36.3% has had schooling up to the middle and higher
level. They also reveal that about 80% of the workforce in rural and urban areas do not
possess any identifiable marketable skills.
The Qualitative Aspect of Deficiencies
The quality of the training system is also a matter of concern, as the infrastructural facilities,
tool/kits, faculty, curriculum are reportedly substandard. The existing institutions also lack
financial and administrative autonomy. The testing, certification and accreditation system is
reportedly weak, and since the deliverables are not precisely defined, there is no effort at
evaluating outcomes and tracking placements. The problem is further complicated with lack
of industry–faculty interaction on course curricula and other factors.

The training system for capital-intensive sectors and hi-tech areas has always received a
highly preferential treatment in contrast to those working in the informal sector. Further there
is no certification system for a large chunk of workers, who do not have any formal education
but have acquired proficiency on their own or through family tradition/long experience. In the
absence of a proper certificate, these classes of workers in the informal sector are subjected to
exploitation and they do not get any avenues for better employment in the market and their
mobility is very restricted.
National Rural Livelihood Mission has defined its output and outcomes target- 15 lakhs rural
BPL youth are to be provided skill training and placement support in the remaining period of
11th plan, 60 lakhs targeted for 12th plan, and a total of 75 lakhs by 2016-17. And for this
several strategies has been designed. The eighth strategy is: -
Support for up scaling Skill Development & Placement and Innovative Projects:
Promotion of placement based skill development activities to diversify and provide elastic
sources of income to the rural youth and other innovative pilot projects, using the services of
premier national and state level institutions including reputed NGOs and corporations;15% of
the total SGSY allocation is earmarked for special SGSY projects in the nature of
pioneer/innovative projects capable of triggering growth impulses.

Non-Governmental Organisation’s initiatives
Sampark’s interventions in the Koppal District of North Karnataka:-
Sampark initiated a vocational training and enterprise development program for youth. In
three years from July 2006 to June 2009, Sampark enabled career pathways for about 357
youth in areas of computer, mobile repairing and servicing, driving, kasuti hand embroidery,
tailoring and beauty courses. Sampark spent about Rs. 4500 to 8000 per trainee (including
training fees, travel and training materials) for a training period of 3 - 6 months. About 60%
of these trainees either started enterprises or found employment.
Don Bosco Tech India, Don Bosco Yuva Kendra, New Delhi: -
Don Bosco Yuva Kendra have knowledge partnership with industry leaders. For e.g. for
retails academy the tie-up is with Bharti-Walmart, for hospitality with ITC-Welcom, for
Automobile mechanics with Mahindra and Tata Motors, Electrician training with Schneider
Electric etc. They run manufacturing, engineering and services courses under this partnership
model. Here, the corporate chips in with curriculum, assessment and certification, on-job
training, guest lectures, placements, recruitment and training of trainer, equipments for the
training centre etc., either directly under their business interests or under their Corporate
Social Responsibility (CSR) interests. In return the training interventions are co-branded for
all publicity purposes thus ensuring win-win and requisite visibility for all parties concerned.
Uniforms, training tool kits, classrooms, stationery etc. clearly display logos of the corporate
as well, besides Don Bosco logo. The operational cost for the training programs come from
Governmental schemes, CSR funds etc. 5-10% of the training cost is also collected from the
students as refundable/non-refundable deposits as the case may be. (In case of Government
projects, it‘s not allowed to collect fees, in which case this fee is refunded along with the
training certificates at the end of the training program)

NEDAN FOUNDATION, Assam
NEDAN FOUNDATION is known for creating alternative livelihood amongst the women
and youth at Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC) Assam, North East. NEDAN has
established sustainable livelihood based campus called "weaving destination livelihood
campus" where production and training goes hand in hand. It has also been recognized as one
of the best livelihood - model in the region. NEDAN has also established sustainable
livelihood amongst the tribal youth called ―Green Grain Bank" (GGB) after providing
intensive training for six months. Today this GGB is managed by tribal youth and NEDAN
continues to impart training to them on management of the GGB and its expansion in other
places. The following are the steps taken by GGB in the course of its work:
• Youth collect paddy during the season when farmers sell it in cheap price.
• Setting up paddy storage for 5000 quintals
• Setting up rice mill within the areas of storage place
In the off season they mill the paddy and sell it in the market or supply the rice to enterprise
shops. They also supply few quintals to Bhutan. The funds annually raised depend on
quantity of rice they are able to sell. GGB is absolutely feasible and sustainable livelihood for
the youth. NEDAN'S learning has been that providing only training without taking any
measures to ensure their employability doesn‘t yield positive results. Imparting training is
one component of creating sustainable livelihood amongst the poor youth especially tribal
youth. The training institute should have a wider network where trained youth are able to
involve or get absorbed in for employment/work.
Learn, Earn, Stand Tall is the motto of Unnati, Bangalore
Learn - to equip youth from marginalised section of the society with necessary skills

Earn - provide them with a sustainable job at the end of the training - Success of Unnati
training program is that 100% of the trained youth in all the vocations are placed in
permanent employment in corporate sector along with social securities such as PF ESI etc.
Stand tall – provide youth with dignity, self-confidence, value systems and soft skills to
become a better citizen, prepared to face day to day challenges in life.
Janodaya, NGO providing the Vocational training for Women
Perceiving empowerment as capacity to manage oneself and their socio-family life, including
economic self reliance for livelihood; trainings played a major role in empowering women.
Since 1994, Janodaya has been involved in identifying available and upcoming opportunities
in the market for jobs, employment and service providing. More than 50,000 women have
been trained and have been linked to job market in the last 15 years for economic and
livelihood enhancement of women. Each year a market survey is conducted for verifying
human resource needs in service sector, to design relevant training, curriculum for conducting
job skills and capacity development courses. Some of the innovative trainings organized :
1. Herbal beauty care training.
2. Advance training for garment production and embroidery.
3. House keeping and maintenance.
4. Cooking and catering.
5. Four wheel driving.
6. Organic food production and alternative marketing.
7. Front Desk Management.
8. Supervisors for H.R(industries).
9. Junior Accountants.
10. Home Nursing.

11. Retailing.
12. Office Assistants.
13. Corporate and domestic (mobile) laundry services.
14. Baby care and play home services.
Institute for Livelihood Education and Development iLEAD- An Aide-et-Action project
India‘s booming economy has been experiencing a high annual growth rate of over 8 per cent
triggering new employment opportunities. This impressive growth rate, however, has not
been matched with availability of a competent workforce which can exploit the emerging
opportunities. The country‘s education and training efforts are, for the most part, inadequate
to prepare the young for the emerging market demands and providing value addition to
existing jobs. Apart from technical skills, emphasis today is also on factors like linguistic and
communication skills, computer literacy and presentable personality. This is just one
indicator of rapidly changing economy that will create new challenges for youth entering the
workforce. The need for a more flexible and mobile workforce will require new skills and
greater adaptability among youth.
AeA realised that given the opportunities to learn and develop appropriate skills, youth from
the marginalised and underprivileged communities can reach out of emerging opportunities
and lead a dignified life. Hence in an effort to equip them with skills required to meet the
current market demands, AeA launched the Institute for Livelihood Education and
Development (iLEAD) programme in India. The programme is aimed at enabling drop-out
youth in the age group of 18-25 years from marginalised sections of society to gain
sustainable and dignified livelihood through employability training in various trades. The
objectives of this program include excessive entry level employment opportunities, poverty

alleviation thereby reducing number of people living below the poverty line in the
intervention area, enhanced personality and life skills, support the youth having exceptional
attitude and interest emerged as successful entrepreneurs and catalysts for employment
opportunities besides advocating, adoption of similar approaches in private and state-run
training programmes focusing on employability and entrepreneurship opportunities especially
for youth from the marginalised communities.
Towards this, iLEAD has worked out training modules, tailor-made for the existing market
demands. The focus is as much on imparting students with technical skills as with personality
development including improvement in spoken English and communication and behavioural
skills. This is done through regular interface with local business, industrial and other potential
employers for course development, training methodology, placements, building backward
and forward linkages and to match up with market demands. The initiative strives to address
social equity by giving priority to marginalised communities like dalits, tribals, landless,
women and disabled persons besides aiming at entrepreneurship development and
progression of candidates to higher levels of income and responsibilities.
iLEAD‘s effective training are complemented with both pre- and post- training activities
which include studying the market demands in the selected areas of intervention through
Employability and Entrepreneurial Potential Assessment (EPA), mobilisation of candidates
through Community Mobilisation Drive (CMD) and spreading awareness about the
programme, placement support and regular counselling of candidates, their families and also
the employers. The course curriculum is developed on identified trades specific to local
market needs following the EPA, and in consultation with leading business establishments
and subject experts. EPA is conducted once in six months to understand the change in the
market.

Prior to the selection of candidates are informed of the objectives, course details and teaching
methodology adopted by iLEAD. The selection involves an aptitude test to identify a
prospective candidate‘s interest besides counselling of the family. The induction process,
carried out in an informal environment, itself is an exercise in ensuring healthy teacher-
student relationship, dialogue, boosting self-confidence and team-building besides working
out an ethical code of conduct. The training module not only aims at providing technical
skills through participative teaching methods but also aims at arming the candidates with life
skills to ensure that they emerge as better and confident individuals. That around 200 hours is
devoted on development of life-skills speaks volumes of importance of attached to
personality development so necessary in the current market environment.
Based on local market demands iLEAD offers 30 trade courses through its 96 centres in the
country. These includes Information Technology, Automation Technology, Hospitality, Sales
and Marketing, Beautician, Dress Designing, Secretarial Practices, Refrigeration and AC
Repairing. During the training, guest lectures are organised where business leaders and
subject experts interact with students which help them develop the right attitude besides
exposing them to both opportunities and challenges. Subsequently, they are placed in actual
workplaces for ‗on the job training‘ for 2-3 weeks which prepares them for employment and
acclimatises them with real work environment.
In the post-placement activity, the iLEAD faculty prepares the students for jobs through
counselling and assessment. iLEAD‘s reputation as a quality training institution is maintained
through placements of suitably job-ready candidates.

Improving Livelihood the iLEAD way…
Improved,
stable
Organized standard of
sector living
employment
Market- relevant and social
Skill Development security
No
education
/school
Poverty drop out
Figure1.1 Improving Livelihood the iLEAD way
 Courses designed to meet the specific needs of the industry, across sectors
 Employment linkages with organized sector
 Short-duration courses to improve accessibility to trainees
 No artificial educational requirement barriers
 Formal certification
 Employment in organised sector forms the basis for financial inclusion and access to
social security

1.2 Aim
 To study the impact of iLEAD as a livelihood strategy for the rural youth.
1.3 Objective
 To understand the functioning of iLEAD.
 To analyse the employment generated by iLEAD for the rural youths.
 To see if iLEAD can be replicated in the private and state run training programme
focusing on employability and entrepreneurship opportunities.
1.4 Research Question
This is an exploratory study and I have tried to ask for
1. Whether the youths trained in certain sectors of livelihood are really employable? If
else at what level?
2. Does this training in livelihood lead to social entrepreneurship or enterprise
development or employment at organized sectors?
3. An early training and capacity building of the youth can increase their employability.
4. Does it add to self-confidence, constructive aspiration and well-being?

1.5 Rationale
The demographic dividend discussed in the background explains very rightly the need of
skill training at a large scale. The rural youths are indispensable part of the population and
thus study relating to value addition of youths is equally important. We are also
witnessing a large number school drop-out youths. This huge proportion of population if
not constructively engaged they may get engaged in destructive and socially undesirable
activities.
In course of literature review it has been found that several schemes of government looks
for rural youth but the desired impact has not been found due to certain lacunae. For
example according to a study on TRYSEM (Training for Rural Youth for Self
Employment) following are the observations: -
(i) The trainers of the schemes were serious not to impart knowledge to the beneficiaries
but to fulfil the formalities.
(ii) Training centres were mismanaged and ill-equipped.
(iii) Full stipend amounts were not paid and the remaining amounts in sizeable proportion
were appropriated by authorities.
(iv) Amount of purchasing raw materials for the training was fully appropriated by the
authorities.
(v) No training certificate was issued to the beneficiaries.
On the basis of cross-survey the investigators confirmed that the scheme had been
undertaken by the management and trainers only to complete the formalities by fulfilling
the paper works. They had also observed that the beneficiaries were not very serious

about the course as they couldn't understand the importance of the scheme. They had
given the following recommendations:
(i) Effective steps should be taken for providing adequate snacks and lunch to the
beneficiaries against their full stipend amounts. It might create an additional interest in
the course.
(ii) Training should be made an essential condition for getting financial assistance under
SGSY.
(iii) Beneficiaries should be supplied full information about the course including the
duration stipend amount and the amount allocated for the purchase of raw materials for
training.
(iv) Training centres should be well managed and well equipped with competent trainers.
Further exploring of the various schemes confronted the same situation. iLEAD is a
project of Aide-et-Action funded under the special projects of SGSY (Swarna Jayanti
Gram Swarojgar Yojana). It has come as a viable alternative as it does take care of the
lacunae and the shortcomings of the other schemes for training rural youths. So it is
essential therefore to know some of its learning so that it can be integrated and replicated
in various other government and non-government schemes.
While employment avenues are increasing rapidly in India‘s fast-growing economy, they
are not being filled by people with compatible skill-sets. iLEAD is an attempt to bridge
the divide between those who have access to opportunities and those who are increasingly
being marginalized. I did my internship evaluating the iLEAD project in Orissa state.
There were eight iLEAD centres in the six most backward district of Orissa and during

the process I met more than six hundred students under training and more than a hundred
student placed. Those all students belonged to economically backward section of the
society and were school drop-outs in the age group of 18-25 years. The placed students
were considered useless, now contributed to the family income and most of them carried
the responsibility of their family.
The Approach Paper to 12th Five Year Plan has identified 12 challenges and skill
development and job opportunities is one of the prioritized challenges being discussed at
solution exchange community of UN. And a whopping 90% of the prime aged persons
being engaged in unskilled labour, it is necessary for such training programmes to be
replicated. That‘s why I chose to evaluate the impact of iLEAD on rural BPL youth.

1.6 Structure of the thesis report
The thesis comprises of five chapters. A brief out line of each chapter is as follows:
Chapter 1: Introduction
This chapter discusses in brief why this topic was chosen for research. There is a broad
description on the background of the study and eventually the various other components
were formulated. The goal, aim, objectives of the study is explained; upon which the
scope of work and approach was outlined. Towards the end it contains the possible scope
and limitations that this study carries.
Chapter 2: Literature Review
In the second chapter a comprehensive review of the literature has been carried out. This
chapter lays the foundation of the various arguments that I have put in the data analysis
and conclusion and recommendations section. It is very important to contextualize the
issue under study and literature review proves to be of great help in this regard. In this
section, a number of issues related to the thesis, has been explained. It also contains an
analysis of the other initiatives for skill and placement based training.
Chapter 3: Methodology
The third chapter talks in detail about the methodology used in data collection and data
analysis. Described in it is the setting/context of the Research Sampling, Research Tools
and Procedure of collecting Data.
Chapter 4: Data Analysis
This chapter has the details of the data analysis and its interpretation. Qualitative data
analysis method has been used in the research. In data analysis the study tries to measure
the impact of skill imparting project on the livelihood of rural youth.

Chapter 5: Conclusions, Recommendations and Suggestions.
This is the final chapter of the thesis and it sums up the complete experience of literature
review and data analysis.

1.7 Scope and Limitation
The study is concerned about the rural BPL youth and livelihood which is one of the most
relevant issues for the development of a nation. Different studies have shown that more
than 90 per cent of the student could not go for higher education and are found employed
with low wages because of lack of skills. The unskilled and unemployed youths who are
considered as social and economic liabilities, are being transformed into social and
economic assets through short term skill trainings and thereby converting them into
socially and economically productive units through projects like iLEAD. Through this
study it is possible to delve deeper into the issues of youth. The objective of the study is
to analyse the employment generated by iLEAD for the rural BPL youths and to see if
iLEAD can be replicated in the private and state run training programme focusing on
employability and entrepreneurship opportunities. This is an exploratory study in which I
have enquired whether the youths trained in certain sectors of livelihood are really
employable, If else at what level? The study also enquires the social entrepreneurship
development or enterprise development or employment at organized sectors through the
training. I have used case study which gives an in-depth dynamic view of the issues. The
study also explores if the training increases the rural youth‘s employability and if so does
that add to their self-confidence, constructive aspiration and well-being.
The study is very specific as it looks into specific trades viz.- Electrical, Patient Care and
Medical Assistance, Automobile, Hospitality Services, Information Technology enabled
Services (ITES). Due to time constraint the study was carried out in 1 iLEAD centre
located in Parsa Bazaar in Patna. The study limits itself to Rural BPL youth who are in
the age group of 18-25 years and school dropouts.

During my internship I had the opportunity to visit 8 iLEAD centres in 6 districts of
Odisha. The major part of my assignment was to document five best case studies from
each centre. In the process I did interact with more than 100 students at their workplace
and almost a thousand students enrolled for training iLEAD. The so called rural BPL
youth of Odisha were all praises for iLEAD. They considered it as a boon. Most of the
placed students are now playing the role of breadwinner of the family. Though in some
cases the salary was low but the students were surer of what they want from the life and
how can they accomplish it with the help of skills gained in iLEAD.
The findings of the study shall be helpful and supportive in further research for providing
better livelihood opportunities to rural youths.

2. Literature Review

2.1 Who Are Rural Youth?
Age and location are the two key defining characteristics of rural youth. Age definitions of
youth vary quite considerably. The United Nations defines youth as all individuals aged
between 15 and 24. The 2007 World Development Report, which focuses on ‗the next
generation‘, expands the definition of youth to include all young people aged between 12 and
24. Similar definitional variations exist with regard to location. Distinguishing between who
is rural and urban is increasingly difficult, especially with the expansion of ‗peri-urban‘ areas
where large proportions of the population rely on agricultural activities to meet their
livelihood needs.
Traditionally, policy discussions concerning youth have been based on the premise that youth
are in transition from childhood to adulthood and, as such, have specific characteristics that
make them a distinct demographic and social category. This transition is multi-faceted. It
involves the sexual maturation of individuals and their growing autonomy social and
economic independence from parents and other carers. (Bennell, 2007)
The nature of the transition from childhood to adulthood has changed over time and varies
considerably from one region to another. Rural children in developing countries become
adults quickly mainly because the transition from school to work usually occurs at an early
age and is completed in a short space of time. The same is true for poor young rural women
with regard to marriage and childbearing. ‗Lack of alternatives‘ is the major reason given for
very high levels of marriage and childbearing among rural adolescent girls. Rural survival
strategies demand that young people fully contribute to meeting the livelihood needs of their
households from an early age. Consequently, youth as a transitional stage barely exists for the
large majority of rural youth, and the poor in particular.

Another related attribute of rural youth is that they tend to lack economic independence or
‗autonomy‘. The rural household is a joint venture, and the gender division of labour is such
that full, individual control of the productive process is virtually impossible for women in
many countries, especially in South Asia. Given that large proportions of rural youth are
subordinate members of usually large extended households, they are largely dependent on
their parents for their livelihood needs. As youth grow older, the autonomy of males
increases, but contracts for females. Moreover, in most traditional and poorest populations in
low-income countries, girls typically marry shortly after menarche or when they leave school.
Rural youth are also very heterogeneous. The World Bank definition of youth encompasses
the 12 year-old pre-pubescent boy attending primary school in a remote rural area and a 24-
year old single mother of four children eking out an existence vending on the streets of a
large rural village. Since their livelihood needs are markedly different, they require very
different sets or ‗packages‘ of policy interventions. The same is true for other distinct groups
of rural disadvantaged youth including the disabled, ex-combatants, and orphans. A clear
separation also has to be made between school-aged youth and post-school youth. One of the
main reasons why youth programming has attracted so little support from governments,
NGOs and donor agencies is that post-school youth are usually subsumed into the adult
population as a whole. The implicit assumption is, therefore, that this group does not face any
additional problems accessing the limited support services that are available for the adult
population as a whole. Nor do they have any social and economic needs that relate
specifically to their age that would give them priority over and above other economically
excluded and socially vulnerable groups. The logical conclusion of this line of argument is
that, given the limited relevance of youth as a distinct and protracted transitional phase in

most rural areas coupled with the heterogeneity of rural youth, youth may have limited
usefulness as a social category around which major rural development policy initiatives
should be developed.
2.2 Key Features of Rural Youth Livelihoods
Most rural youth are either employed (waged and self-employed) or ‗not in the labour force‘.
The issue, therefore, is not so much about unemployment, but serious under-employment in
low productivity, predominantly household-based activities. Almost one-quarter of young
people live in households where income per head is less than one dollar a day. The
unemployed are mainly better-educated urban youth who can afford to engage in relatively
protracted job search. It is better, therefore, to focus on livelihood improvement of the most
disadvantaged youth rather than unemployed.
It is widely alleged that rural youth are increasingly disinterested in smallholder farming,
which is viewed as ‗dirty work‘. Thus, rural youth tend to be relatively mobile, both
nationally and increasingly across international borders. Recent research shows that
migration from rural to urban areas will continue on a large scale and that this is an essential
part of the livelihood coping strategies of the rural poor. Temporary migration and
‗commuting‘ are also a routine part of the combined rural-urban livelihood strategies of the
poor across a wide range of developing countries (Deshingkar, 2004). In many parts of Asia
and Africa, remittances from rural to urban migration are overtaking the income from
agriculture. It is important therefore that young people in rural areas are prepared for
productive lives in both rural and urban environments. Policymakers should, in turn, revise
negative perceptions of migration and to view migration as socially and economically
desirable.

Rural youth tend to be poorly educated, especially in comparison to urban youth. The extent
of ‗urban bias‘ in the provision of publicly funded education and training services is large in
most low-income developing countries (Bennell, 1999). The deployment of teachers and
other key workers to rural areas amounts to nothing less than a crisis in many countries. Poor
quality education, high (direct and indirect) schooling costs and the paucity of ‗good jobs‘
continue to dampen the demand for education among poor parents.
Rural youth have been heavily involved in civil wars, and other forms of conflict in a
growing number of countries, which poses a major threat to the long-term development
prospects of these countries. Traditional safety nets are breaking down and rural youth
expectations for a better life are increasing, especially with access to global information
technologies.
As with the rural population as a whole, rural youth are engaged in a diverse range of
productive activities, both agricultural and non-agricultural. Statistics are limited, but the
proportions of rural youth engaged in waged and self-employment in both these main areas of
activity varies considerably across countries.
Youth, especially in rural areas, do not usually constitute an organised and vocal constituency
with the economic and social power to lobby on their own behalf.

2.3 The Concepts of Livelihood & Livelihood Strategies
Rakodi and Tony (2002) conceptualize livelihoods as the multiple activities, which
households adopt in order to survive and improve their well-being. They see each
household‘s livelihood as based on available assets and household resources. Assets are
composed of five capitals, which Rakodi puts into a ‗livelihoods framework‘ as follows:
human capital, natural capital, financial capital, physical capital, and social capital. With
reference to Carney (1998), Rakodi elaborates on the meaning of each capital: human capital
refers to the income-earning capacity of household members; their labour qualifications,
levels of education and working skills. Natural capital is composed of resources such as land,
water and other environmental resources; financial capital refers to savings, credit,
remittances, and pensions; physical capital is the infrastructures such as transport, energy,
housing, and household goods; and finally social capital refers to social networks and
membership access to organizations. Individuals and households build their livelihood
strategies on the basis of those assets. Access to assets of each family will never be equal, and
differences in access to assets can be illustrated by drawing different shapes of a pentagon
(Figure 2.3.1).
H: Human capital
N: Natural capital
F: Financial capital
P: Physical capital
S: Social capital
Figure 2.3.1 Differently shaped pentagons
Source: Rakodi (2002).

The livelihoods of households, especially those who have very limited access to any assets,
are not just defined by their own capitals, but also by the economic, social and political
contexts where they live. These contextual circumstances are labeled vulnerability; policies;
and institutions and processes (Bebbington 2000; Ellis 1998; Helgesson 20o6; Rakodi 2002).
Vulnerability, as pointed out by Moser (1998), refers to insecurity in the well-being of
individuals, families, and communities occurring due to sudden changes in the social milieu
or environment where they live.
Environment changes that threaten welfare can be ecological, economic, social, and political
and they can take the form of sudden shock, long-term trends, or seasonal cycles (Moser
1998:3).
The contexts of policies, institutions and processes relate to the surrounding structure of
organizations, both governmental and non-governmental (Harpham and Emma 2002; Rakodi
2002). ‗Thus a focus on poor people and their household has to be situated within a wider
context‘ (Rakodi and Tony 2002: xx). The influencing factors coupled with the availability
(or not) of assets produce the distinctions or diversification of livelihoods between places and
households (Ellis 1998; Perz 2005). Livelihood strategies are the activities that people
undertake and the choices they make in order to achieve well-being and security. Rakodi
(2002) identifies how the aims of the strategies can be divided into three steps in order to
secure the livelihood in the future: firstly, the aim is to cope with stress and shocks; secondly,
it is to maintain capability and assets; and thirdly it is to provide sustainable livelihood
opportunities for the next generation. The livelihood framework introduced by Rakodi (2002)
was in her case used to analyze the situation of urban dwellers, but I found it also applicable
when analyzing livelihoods in the rural context. My point of view is that people adopt their
livelihood strategies based on their different assets and resources, and that ‗the shape of the
pentagon‘ might vary according to each family and the ‗relational space‘ where they find

themselves. I am inspired by the concepts provided by Rakodi and use them to analyze how
people create their livelihoods and livelihood strategies in order to survive and to cope with
the period of transformation and restructuring of the economic system. The livelihood
perspective has been helpful in examining how people manage to survive with the
availability of resources they have [lost] due to the application of economic liberalization in
Laos in general, and more precisely in two case studies of mining and tourism respectively.
Helgesson (2006) and Sörensson (2008) also found the livelihoods framework provided by
Rakodi useful for analyzing local changes of livelihoods, and have used it as analytical
framework for their studies.
2.4 Youth and Livelihood
One of the most dramatic changes in India‘s youth population in recent decades has been an
exponential increase in personal mobility, with liberalization as a major driver. In assessing
their life chances, most young people are no longer confined to the opportunities in their local
area, as was the case with many earlier. Perhaps the most universal feature of population
mobility is that it is selective of young adults. (Quraishi, 2006)
The world community is aware of the special needs of the youth. The first recognition of this
came when the United Nations declared 1985 as the International Year of Youth (IYY) with
the banner theme ‗participation, development and peace‘. Since then the world has
experienced fundamental political, social, economic and cultural changes. The Youth
Development Summit in Cairo (2002) drew utmost attention of the member countries about
the need for ensuring livelihood opportunities for the young people in their national policies,
plans and programmes.

As a follow up to the IYY, the UN General Assembly in its 50th session, Agenda item 105,
adopted the world programme of action for youth which went beyond stating that the youth
are a major human resource for development and key agents for social change, economic
progress and technological innovations. The assembly identified ten priority areas for
interventions: education, employment, hunger and poverty, health, environment, drug abuse,
juvenile delinquency, leisure time activities, development of girls and young women and the
full and effective participation of youth in the life of society and in the decision-making. It
invited governments, NGOs, public and private sectors and youth organizations to implement
the Programme of Action (POA) by undertaking relevant activities outlined in the POA.
India‘s National Youth Policy, (2003) affirms the national commitment for composite and
all-round development of youth and seeks to establish an all India perspective to fulfill their
legitimate aspirations and empower them to successfully accomplishing the challenging task
of national reconstruction and social change that lie ahead. In this regard, the policy
recognizes four thrust areas, i.e. youth empowerment, gender justice, inter-sectoral approach,
and information and research network. It also highlights eight key sectors of youth
development. They are education, training and empowerment, health, environment, sports
and recreation, art and culture, science and technology, and civics and citizenship.
The National Youth Policy has specifically acknowledged the need for education and training
of young people to make them socially useful and economically productive. The policy
directs the government to ensure gainful employment and adequate opportunities for the
personal development and advancement of those who are not currently employed. It
mandates the government to provide social safety nets and protection to the young people

from all manner of exploitation. Of the key sectors of youth concern identified by the national
policy, training and employment is a priority leading to real youth empowerment.
In essence, it means helping young people with optimum opportunities to contribute to the
economic, social and cultural advancement of their families, community and the country
enabling them to reach their full potential. Further, the National Commission for Youth has
identified three dimensions of youth empowerment: (i) Young people are empowered when
they are free to make informed decisions, to take actions based on their decision and
simultaneously accept responsibility for the consequences of that decision and action; (ii)
Generating enabling conditions and climate in which young people can act on their own
behalf and on their own terms without external interventions; and (iii) Creating a stable
environment for them to grow up and facilitate their eventual access to an economic and
social base supported by appropriate legal and administrative framework and a positive value
system.
Employment generation for the youth, who are the most productive section of society, has to
be the highest priority of the government. Past experience has shown that economic growth
does not always generate the needed employment. Employment growth in rural India has
already slowed down to 1.3% per annum (IDR, 2004-05). Aware of this, the Planning
Commission and the government have already reviewed the employment strategy and started
segmenting the youth into various categories and targeting them with new employment
generation and guarantee schemes.
The strategy for employment generation as recommended by the Task Force in the
Planning Commission is based on intervention in five major areas:

1. Accelerating the rate of growth of GDP, with a particular emphasis on sectors likely to
ensure the spread of income to the low-income segments of the labour force.
2. Pursuing appropriate sectorial policies in individual sectors, which are particularly
important for employment generation. These sector level policies must be broadly consistent
with the overall objective of accelerating GDP growth.
3. Implementing focused special programmes for creating additional employment of
enhancing income generation from existing activities aimed at helping vulnerable groups that
may not be sufficiently benefited by the more general growth promoting policies.
4. Pursuing suitable policies for education and skill development which would upgrade the
quality of the labour force and make it capable of supporting a growth process that generates
high quality jobs.
5. Ensuring that the policy and legal environment governing the labour market encourages
labour absorption, especially in the organized sector.
Youth unemployment constitutes a major part of the overall national problem, any strategies
formulated to combat it cannot be isolated from the overall employment strategy. However,
the fact that the majority of youth would be first-time entrants to the labour force calls for
certain special measures, short and long-term, to tackle the problem. Important among these
are measures aimed at (a) promoting employability of youth by investing in education and
vocational training and improving the impact of such investments, (b) giving the same
opportunity for young women as to young men, (c) developing entrepreneurship, making it
easier to start and run enterprises to provide more and better jobs for the youth, (d) placing
employment creation at the centre of macro-economic policy and (e) installing efficient
labour market institutions to guide and support youth in their transition from vocational
preparation to the pursuit of chosen vocations.

Some of the programmes/schemes of Government of India focusing on livelihoods issue are
discussed below.
Swarnjayanti Gram Swarozgar Yojana: Launched in April 1999, the objective of the
Swarnjayanti Gram Swarozgar Yojana (SGSY) is to bring the assisted poor families
(swarozgaries) above the poverty line by ensuring appreciable sustained level of income over
a period of time. This objective is to be achieved by inter alia organising the rural poor into
self-help groups (SHGs) through the process of social mobilization, their training and
capacity building and provision of income generating assets. The SHG approach helps the
poor to build their self-confidence through community action. Interactions in group meetings
and collective decision-making enable them in identification and prioritization of their needs
and resources. It is expected that this process would ultimately lead to the strengthening and
socio-economic empowerment of the rural poor as well as improve their collective bargaining
power.
Sampoorna Grameen Rozgar Yojana: The primary objective Sampoorna Grameen Rozgar
Yojana (SGRY) is to provide additional and supplementary wage employment and thereby
provide food security and improve nutritional levels in all rural areas. The secondary
objective is the creation of durable community, social and economic assets and infrastructural
development in rural areas. The programme is being implemented as a centrally sponsored
scheme on cost sharing basis between the Centre and the states in the ratio of 75:25 of the
cash component of the programme.
The SGRY is open to all rural poor who are in need of wage employment and desire to do
manual and unskilled work in and around their village/habitat. The programme is self-
targeting in nature. While providing wage employment, preference shall be given to
agricultural wage earners, non-agricultural unskilled wage earners, marginal farmers; the

persons affected due to calamities, women, members of Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes
and parents of child labour withdrawn from hazardous occupations, parents of handicapped
children or adult children of handicapped parents who are desirous of working for wage
employment.
With the growth in the Indian economy, there are many sectors that have opened new
opportunities for the youth. However, 90 percent of the prime aged persons in the Indian
workforce are employed in the low productivity informal sector jobs. Due to the barriers in
the entry of unskilled persons in the formal sector, investing in the skill development of the
youth is the critical need.
Looking at the relevance of the issue, Government has also taken a lot of initiatives in this
area. The Eleventh Five Year Plan suggested the three-tier institutional structure consisting of
the Prime Minister‘s National Council on Skill Development, the National Skill Development
Coordination Board and the National Skill Development Corporation. Besides this, many
Government programmes/schemes, Ministries, Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs), Rural
Development and Self Employment Training Institute (RUDSETIs) and Confederation of
Indian Industry (CII) are focusing on skilling the young Indians.
National Rural Livelihood Mission has defined its output and outcomes target- 15 lakhs rural
BPL youth are to be provide skill training and placement support in the remaining period of
11th plan, 60 lakhs targeted for 12th plan, and a total of 75 lakhs by 2016-17. And for this
several strategies has been designed. The eighth strategy is: -
Support for up scaling Skill Development & Placement and Innovative Projects
Promotion of placement based skill development activities to diversify and provide elastic
sources of income to the rural youth and other innovative pilot projects, using the services of

premier national and state level institutions including reputed NGOs and corporations; 15
%of the total SGSY allocation is earmarked for special SGSY projects in the nature of
pioneer/innovative projects capable of triggering growth impulses.
Many private agencies like VIDYA, a skill training programmes are helping rural women by
imparting various skills suited to their local needs. VIDYA‘s Skill training program started in
1991 as a need-based program in the community. The program has touched the lives of over
2000 women with its aim is to generate self-confidence and enable women to earn a living as
an entrepreneur or as an employee. It has accomplished this by holding regular workshops in
sewing and embroidery (by hand and machine), short workshops in jewellery and candle
making, nutrition, tie-dye work, providing computer training and adult literacy. It also trains
women to start their own salon and getting them employment in a salon or helping in setting
up their own beauty training centre.
Dr. Reddy Livelihood Advanced Business Schools (LABS) are providing the similar kind of
training and imparting skill based training to rural youths helping them meet the basic
necessities of life and thereby lading the foundation for a sustainable livelihood. LABS
addresses the needs of youth (18-35 years) who are constrained by low income levels,
inadequate skills, irregular employment, absence of opportunities for training and
development, family indebtedness and little bargaining power at the economic or social level.
To enable these youth to gain a foothold in the competitive job market, LABS gives them
livelihood and soft skills in an environment of interactive learning and mentoring that
develops their inherent strengths. The curriculum is constantly upgraded in tune with industry
requirements. The aspirants are also put through intensive Communicative English, on-the-
job training and work-readiness modules, to help them understand the workplace better.
Many of the government and non-government initiatives for skill development is dealt in
details in the introduction part of the research.

3. Methodology

3.1 Context of the Research
Aide-et-Action (AeA) was founded in 1981 by Pierre Bernard Le Bas as a secular and
apolitical Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) in Paris, France. Its main objective is to
empower marginalized communities in developing countries to take control of their future.
AeA views education as an enabling factor that empowers communities to take charge of
their own development progressively. Aide-et-Action defends the fundamental right to
―Education for All‖, especially the poorest and the most vulnerable. The organization focuses
its actions on facilitating access to primary and basic education, improving the quality of
education, diversifying educational efforts and strengthening the skills of local communities
towards their development.

International Presence. Source:
AeA Annual Report 2007-08
Map 3.1.1: Aide-et-Action

Over the last 27 years, AeA has evolved from an external donor agency to an international
development organisation, specializing in education. AeA provides education to 2 million
children from marginalised communities across the world. Today, with its central office in
Paris, France, AeA works in 20 countries in Africa, South Asia, South East Asia and the
Caribbean. AeA draws on several forms of funding in order to finance its actions. These
include sponsorship with over 62,000 sponsors and donors providing regular support to its
activities, partnerships with corporations and foundations and Institutional Funding. AeA
India was the first country programme of the organisation initiated in 1981 and today it works
in 18 States and 3 Union Territories towards development of children, families and
communities. AeA India focuses on thrust areas such as Quality Education, Livelihood
Education, Inclusive Education, Women‘s Empowerment and Education, Disaster
Preparedness and Mitigation, and HIV/AIDS and Health. Aide et Action implements 35
development and education projects either directly or with NGO partners focusing on
marginalized communities (tribal and dalits, child labourers, street children, children affected
by wars and natural disasters, children and persons with disabilities, women and dropout
youth). To ensure maximum benefits to these communities, AeA works in close partnership
with several government, non-government and international agencies. In the process of
making education integral to developmental processes, AeA establishes partnerships with
NGOs to support the educational component of integrated development programs. This gives
latitude to its interventions and creates space to develop common approaches with partner
organisations.

Map 3.1.2: Aide-et-Action

International Presence. Source: AeA
Annual Report 2007-08
The study was carried out in the Patna district of Bihar. As per census 2001 the population of
Patna District is over 4,718,592 (Male - 2,519,942 and Female-2,198,650). The growth rate is
(1991-2001) is 30.17%. Overall Literacy rate is 62.9%, and female Literacy rate is 50.8%.
Many languages are spoken in Patna. Hindi is the official language of the state of Bihar.
English is also spoken extensively. (Source: Census of India 2001) The native dialect is
Magahi. Other dialects from other regions of Bihar spoken widely in Patna are Bhojpuri, and
Maithili. Other languages spoken in Patna include Bengali, Urdu and Oriya.

Map 3.1.3 District Map of Patna
HQ Patna
Area 3,202 sq. kms.
Population Total 36,18,211 Rural 22,41,510 Urban 13,76,701
Literacy Rate by Sex (Patna)

Literacy Rate*
Persons Males Females
SL District 1991 2001 1991 2001 1991 2001
1. Patna 56.33 63.82 69.07 73.81 41.35 52.17
*Literacy Rate is the percentage of literates to population of age 7 years and above.

Out of the entire Bihar population 89.5% stay in the rural areas and almost 58% of Bihar‘s
population is below the age of 25. Patna is the most urbanized district with a rural population
of 58.4 per cent. The dropout rates in Bihar in primary education level have declined by 5
percentage points between 2004-05 and 2005-06. The decline has been higher in the case of
boys, as compared to girls. However, at upper primary level, there was a very modest decline
by just 1 percentage point. At the secondary level, the position has deteriorated with a
marginal increase of dropout rate by 0.01 per cent. Due to this there is a large number youth
who is either unemployed or employed in unorganised sector.
The iLEAD centre for the study is located in Parsa Bazar which comes under Phulwarisharif
block of Patna, Bihar. As of 2001 India Census, Phulwari Sharif had a population of 53,166.
Males constitute 53% of the population and females 47%. Phulwari Sharif has an average
literacy rate of 63%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 70%, and
female literacy is 56%. In Phulwari Sharif, 15% of the population is under 6 years of age.

Map 3.1.4 iLEAD centres in India

3.2 Sampling
The population for sampling is the rural youth enrolled in the iLEAD project. The sample for
the research was done through random sampling method. I randomly selected 100 placed
candidates and then I chose every 5th that made the sample size of 20.
Distribution of Case Studies (Trade Wise & Gender Wise)
8
7
6
5
4
3
7
5
2 4 Male
1
3
Female Male
1 Female
0
Fig.3.2.1 Fig.3.2.2
3.3 Research Tools:
This research employs mainly qualitative methods. Qualitative research methodology is a
process of inquiry usually based on empirical data from interviews and fieldwork. Doing
qualitative research, the researchers start with loose questions and an open mind and from the
gathered data new concepts and/or new theoretical insights may be generated. Qualitative
research emphasizes generating or modifying theories rather than testing theories. Creswell
(1998) defines the meaning of qualitative method as follows.

Qualitative research is an inquiry process of understanding based on distinct methodological
traditions of inquiry that explore a social or human problem. The researcher builds a
complex, holistic picture, analyses words, reports detailed views of informants, and conducts
a study in a natural setting (Creswell, 1998:15).
According to Creswell, there are eight reasons why researchers might want to use qualitative
methods instead of quantitative: (1) if the research questions have to do with how or what; (2)
if the topic needs to be explored and is not fully covered by existing theory; (3) if the
researcher wants to give a detailed view; (4) if there is a wish to study individuals in their
natural setting (5) if researchers are interested in writing in a literary style; (6) if researchers
have sufficient time to spend for fieldwork; (7) if the methods are accepted by an audience;
and (8) if they want to emphasize the role of researchers as active learners. Lawler (2002), in
turn, points out that.
(..) one compelling reason for carrying out qualitative interviews is that they offer a means of
exploring the way in which people interpret the world, and their place within it. These
interpretations are often extremely complex and nuanced, and would be difficult to access
through other means (Lawler 2002:242).
Qualitative method was used to assess the impact of iLEAD as a livelihood strategy.
It includes:
Case Study: A case study is an intensive study of one individual. Typically, the case study
may involve interviews, observation, experiments and tests. The case study for this study was
made through interviews with the placed students at their work place. This was an informal

interview with the placed students by visiting the places where they worked. The interview
was concerned with the socio-economic status of the students and their family background.
3.4 Procedure of collecting Data
The iLEAD Patna centre was visited for choosing the sample. The placed students at their
respective work place were visited and detailed case study was prepared. The meeting with
the employers was also held in order to know about the employability of the trained
candidates.
3.5 Analysis
The twenty cases were content analysed which brought out different facets of the cases that
include: personal information including educational, socio-economic background, contexts,
dynamics and different processes of iLEAD livelihood strategy.

4. iLEAD Patna Centre

4.1 Patna iLEAD- a look
iLEAD has six centres in Bihar- Motihari, Madhubani, Darbhanga, Samastipur, Patna and
Muzaffarpur. According tp the data available at the Aide-et-Action regional office Patna,
some 5395 candidates have been trained out of which 4536 been placed (2008-upto Dec
2010). This implies that Bihar‘s iLEAD centre has an average placement of 84%.
iLead Patna is situated in Parsa Bazar of the Phulwarisharif block. Patna centre has 4 courses
running, they are- IT enabled Services, Automobile Repairing, Electrical and House Wiring
and Patient Cares and Assistance. Initially it has Hospitality Services also but due to less
opportunity of employment in hospitality sector in Patna it‘s been closed. Also the rural
students found uninterested in the hospitality sector. This study has tried to analyse on
strength and weakness in some of the following process by separate consultations with
students, faculties:
 Visibility & presentability of the centre: -
The centre is well connected with road and railways. The railway station is a two minute
walk from the centre. The centre‘s building is well-furnished. The classrooms are well
maintained in terms of furniture and the labs for ITeS and Automobile are also in good
condition. The classroom‘s walls and office is well decorated with the project works of the
trainees. There is a good facility of water and toilet. The building is well equipped with
electricity, which is good for the lab. The posters of story of success of iLEAD are stick on
the wall of entry gate of the centre.
 Course curriculum transaction in class rooms: -
Course curriculum transaction in classrooms is being carried out with full zest by the
faculties. Story telling method is being adopted to encourage the dropped put students to
carry on with the studies. The theory part is being explained in the local language and with
emphasis on the practical part. However the students wanted some more hands-on practice
and frequent exposure visits to concerned industry.
 Supplementary assistances for better improvement: -
Personality grooming classes are being taken in which the students are being trained in order
to improve upon the communication skills. There is a very healthy communication between
students and faculties that contributes to the all-round development of the student. There
should be a feedback class at the completion of one batch. In which we ask them about the
course i.e. Which part of syllabus they understood most and which part less. What were the
reasons behind their answer? This will help us in understanding that which part of syllabus
should be taken more care so that student can understand that part easily.

 Lab arrangement: -
There is separate lab for each course. Each lab is small as compared to number of students.
When there is full attendance the faculty face little problem in lab arrangement. But they
solve it by dividing the students in different groups. Each group attends the lab at a time. The
centre was well equipped with all the equipment in laboratories but those required regular
maintenance. All the computers have older versions of operating systems of windows but
with the rapid changing scenario of the market and in order to survive the competition, there
is a need of up gradation in software and hardware.
Information Technology Enabled Services- Out of nine computers 2-3 computer always not
working properly hence the density increase on the rest. And problem becomes worst when
the faculty tries to give basic computer practical to all the students of iLEAD. Therefore if the
number of system should be increased it will beneficial for the student.
Patient Care & Medical Assistance - The lab of PCMA is also small as compared to number
of students but organized in well manner. The students interested in lab came early in the
morning for laboratory as well as equipment is free in morning.
Automobile- There is a single motor cycle for the lab students for purpose for laboratory, they
faced difficulties when the strength of class is full
 Both student and faculty assessment process: -
The student assessment process constitutes of weekly tests and sometimes monthly tests
because the school- drop out students do avoid visiting the centre due to fear of tests. There is
no faculty assessment process as such and student‘s appraisal of the teachers can‘t be done as
the students dropped out from school are not able to do so. A proper assessment of faculties
can be done through some workshop organised with the help of industry experts and this will
also lead to capacity building of the iLEAD faculty.
 Over all personality development of the student: -
The students were certainly due to the certain advancement of the Patna region have got an
edge and are very comfortable with the outside world. But special emphasis should be given
on to improve the communication skills and GCE should be emphasised more to make them
less vulnerable to the world. Shramdaan, Celebration of Women‘s day and extra-curricular
activities are part of the personality grooming process at iLEAD centre.
 Faculties’ motivation, involvement, ownership and innovation in the program: -
iLEAD must be proud of its faculties. They are very competent and motivated and above all a
very inspiring character. The faculties have a familial relationship with the students. The
teachers were all ears to any suggestions and the really they go out of their way to make life
easier for the students.

 Linkage with employer: -
The success of a placement based training project depends on how good is the linkage
with employer.
 Maintenance of database and record: -
Proper maintenance of database and record is necessary for monitoring of a project and thus
it‘s successful completion. Apart from maintain records on paper it‘s very necessary in this
digital world to have electronic forms of data. Advantage of electronic data- it is easily
accessible from distant locations, monthly reports, budget requisitions & other reports can be
easily transferred from centre to office headquarters. Both type of records and databases were
properly maintained by the centre. But the MIS format data was unavailable at the centre.
 Placement (salary, employers): -
No doubt at entry level the salaries are very low and most of the employers are the
contractors. So in order to avoid this there is a need to get the NCVT certification of the
students so that they could get permanent job and not depend upon the contractors.
 Improvement needed from a student point of view
NCVT Certification and more on hand practical experience i.e. increased duration of the
training period.

4.2 Case Studies
A case study is an intensive study of one individual. Typically, the case study may involve
interviews, observation, experiments and tests. The case study for this study was made
through interviews with the placed students at their work place. This was an informal
interview with the placed students by visiting the places where they worked. The interview
was concerned with the socio-economic status of the students and their family background.
Case Study 1
Dhananjay Kumar, 21 years old hails from OBC sect of the society. With great struggle he
could study up to 5th standard due to poor economic status of the family. He was compelled
to pick up a job in a Press as a labour and he worked as a helper under a senior Carpenter for
just `600 per month in order to support the family of 5 members. During this period a major
accident occurred and he broke his Back-bone at work and was compelled to go on a long
treatment. The major source of income for his family is the Beetle shop through which he
hardly earned `1000 per month. During the course of treatment, he got the informed about
iLEAD through the Community Mobilisation Drive be conducted in Padri Ki Haveli
(Church) at Patna City. After the treatment he with his friends went iLEAD and was
counseled by the faculty at centre. Today he feels that he had taken the best decision in his
life. Today he is reaping the fruit of success and is at present employed with one of the best
Automobile Workshop Hero Honda Service station (Patliputra Automobile). He also earns
incentive to the tune of `600 per month apart from a salary of `2000.

Case Study 2
Indu Kumari, 25 years old belongs to Christian family of 6 members. Her father and she
herself worked on other people‘s land as daily wage agriculture labour which could mostly
fetch them a meager income of `1000 per month and that too was not for the whole year.
With struggle she managed to complete her Intermediate education. After that she was sent to
live with her cousin sister who works as sweeper. But there she has to face the comments of
her sister-in-laws. During her troubled days she had made a visit to the Seva Sadan that
happens to be very close to her cousin‘s house their she came to hear about iLEAD. She went
home and spoke to her cousin about what she had learnt from CMD. Her sister also
confirmed iLEAD‘s presence in Patna by introducing one of our automobile student, she
knew had passed out and placed, earning a living there. Indu had made up her mind that she
was also going to bring a change in her life. Today Indu is attending her duties as a house
keeper in one of the biggest Resort in Patna. She draws a salary `1800 & she also gets free
food during her duty hours. As she is working in resort she does get `1500 as tips. Today
Indu has left behind all the tension she had and is also able to reduce her parent‘s burden as
she sends them some amount from her salary. She has opened an account with Andhra Bank
in which she regularly deposits `500 every month.

Case Study 3
Navlesh Kumar, 25 years of age has completed his intermediate belongs to a Christian family
of 7 members. His family mostly employed as daily wage agriculture labour barely managed
to get `1000 per month. With great struggle he could study and come up to intermediate
after that due to economic reasons and the situation in the house he could not continue with
his studies further, and was compelled to pick up a job for just `500 at a local school. But
that was not sufficient as there were seven members in the family to feed & cloth. During his
days when he was facing these problems he came in touch with two of his friends who were
iLEAD pass outs of the Hospitality batch and were placed, they suggested to him to get
himself enrolled and undergo training. He took the advice and joined. Today he feels that he
has taken the best decision in his life. His decision he felt was the right one of joining
iLEAD. Today he is employed with one of the best Restaurant (Bisaka Restaurant) in the
Industry and he is also able to help the family back home he also does not have to cook or
pay for the food as he provided with all his meals besides his salary. He also earns tips to the
tune of `150 per day.

Case Study 4
Preety Kumari aged 22 years belongs to a family of 6 members of SC sect of the society.
Because of the poor economic condition of the family she was not able to continue her
studies after 9th grade. Her father is an autorikshaw driver and manages to earn a `2000 per
month and is the only bread winner of the family. He took debt of `50, 000 from some of our
relatives on interest for autorikshaw. My father is single one to earn for the whole family and
he has been paying installment money to the Bank and my relative with interest. She came to
know about iLEAD with the help of C.M.D. conducted by iLEAD Team under the head of
our ward councilor Mr.Rantosh at Mainpura (Patna). She got enrolled in the Patient Care and
Medical Assistance trade and is placed in Arvind Hospital, Ashok Rajpath, Patna. She earns a
monthly of `1500 per month. Now, she bares her own auto fare, even she is paying the fees
of my two sisters and one brother and has decided to open an account in bank. She was really
happy for being able to give minor treatment to her family members. She recalled of not
celebrating any festivals because of economic reasons but now she was very happy and
determined to celebrate the festivals.

Case Study 5
Sudhir Kumar aged 25 years has completed his matriculation belongs to SC sect of the
society in a family of 6 members. With great struggle he could study and come up to 10th
grade after that due to economic reasons and the situation in the house he could not continue
with his studies further, and was compelled to pick up a job of Tailoring for just `10 per day
at a Tailoring shop, still the problems did not come to an end as there were six members in
the family to feed & cloth. During his days when he was facing these problems he came in
touch with Father Ruzario who has been helping iLEAD to mobilize students from different
parts of Bihar with the help of seminar at Church, they suggested him in a seminar to get
himself enrolled and undergo training. Today he feels that he has been taken new birth and
has taken the best decision in his life. At present employed with Dealer of Bajaj (Sharma
Bajaj) and he is also able to help the family back home he has been also getting food and
accommodation facilities besides his salary. He is repaying the debt taken for his brother‘s
accident. He also earns tips on selling and repairing of motorbikes. His monthly salary is
`1500.

Case Study 6
Arun Kumar aged 20 years belongs to SC family of 3 members lives in Patna. He has passed
his matriculation. His father is a farmer who earns approximately `3000 per month. He was
a labor in his village, to support his family. He came to know about iLEAD during a
community mobilization drive conducted by iLEAD members. The faculty at iLEAD Patna
centre counselled me towards a new life and told about the future ahead in new light which
reflects the basic philosophy of iLEAD -bringing disadvantaged youth into the mainstream
through skill enhancement and personality development. The efforts paid off as he gradually
and steadily began taking life more positively, and went on to take a course on electrical by
the end of the course he was completely transformed, brimming with confidence and ready to
take on life. Now placed in an electrical ware shop and his training in house-wiring earns him
`4000 per month.

Case Study 7
Kanhaiya Kumar, (22 years) a resident of Parsa Bazaar, Patna belongs to SC sect of family of
05 members. He could complete only 8th standard of his education. He is handicap by birth
and therefore was living in guilt and felt helpless in orde to be not be able to contribute to the
family sustenance. He came to know about iLEAD during a community mobilization drive
conducted by iLEAD members. The faculty at iLEAD Patna centre encouraged him towards
a new life and see the future ahead in new light which reflects the basic philosophy of iLEAD
-bringing disadvantaged youth into the mainstream through skill enhancement and
personality development. The efforts paid off as I gradually and steadily began taking life
more positively, and went on to take a course on electrical. By the end of the course I
completely transformed, brimming with confidence and ready to take on life. His skills as an
electrician earn them `3000 per month. He was feeling hopeless and depressed towards his
life before joining iLEAD, now he has started believing in himself and started my own
business and living a normal life like others. He doesn‘t have any guilt of being handicapped
because now he knows that he can also do what others can do.

Case Study 8
Uchit Kumar, aged 25 years is an OBC candidate is a resident of Nadawan Dhanarua, Patna.
After completing his matriculation, he saw no scope for him as he was not good in studying.
He was looking for a job but his qualification was not relevant for any industry which made
him more sad and hopeless. He came to know about iLEAD during a community
mobilization drive conducted by iLEAD members, the faculty at iLEAD‘S Patna centre
encouraged him towards a new life and see the future ahead in new light which reflects the
basic philosophy of iLEAD-bringing disadvantaged youth into the mainstream through skill
enhancement and personality development. The efforts paid off as I gradually and steadily
began taking life more positively, and went on to take a course on electrical. By the end of
the course I completely transformed, brimming with confidence and ready to take on life.
Now he is working in Anup Electrical Repairing Centre, Kankarbagh, Patna. He is adding
`3000 to his family income.

Case Study 9
Ampi Kumari, daughter of a teacher in a local private school, a resident of Punpun, Patna
belongs to SC sect. She has passed her intermediate examinations and discontinued her
studies after intermediate because her family was economically weak. Her family‘s monthly
income is `4000. She came to know about iLEAD during a community mobilization drive
conducted by iLEAD members. The faculty at iLEAD‘S Patna centre encouraged her towards
a new life and see the future ahead in new light which reflects the basic philosophy of
iLEAD-bringing disadvantaged youth into the mainstream through skill enhancement and
personality development. She enrolled for the Patient Care and Medical Assistance and now
she is placed with Bihar Hospital, Mithapur, Patna. Now she is earning `2000 per month and
adding to her family income. She has now started believing in herself and is more confident
and also in a position to contribute to her family.

Case Study 10
Nisha Sharma, a matriculation passed candidate belongs to SC sect., aged 25 years is married
to a tailor. His husband‘s income is `3000 per month and they reside in Simra, Parsa Bazar,
Patna. She was working as an Angan Bari Sevika but was paid very less approx. `1000,
which was not sufficient to run her family so she left that job. She came to know about
iLEAD during a community mobilization, while she was working in the field, faculties of
iLEAD Patna gave her a brief idea of the course PCMA. She liked their suggestion and
decided to go for it. Now she is very happy and the reason behind it is that she is working in
hospital and also paid good. She also earn from her locality by providing them nursing
facility, she thanks iLEAD for giving her such a wonderful opportunity. She is now earning
3000 per month and placed in Rabya Basri Hospital,Kankarbagh,Patna.

Case Study 11
Priti Devi aged 21 years is married to a salesman belongs to SC sect and a resident of Pothi,
Punpun, Patna. She was married in a very early age, so she could not continue her studies.
From her childhood days she was very much passionate for work, she always wanted to work
in an organization and her husband supported. She came to know about iLEAD during a
community mobilization drive conducted by iLEAD members. The faculty at iLEAD‘S Patna
centre counseled her towards a new life and see the future ahead in new light which reflects
the basic philosophy of iLEAD-bringing disadvantaged youth into the mainstream through
skill enhancement and personality development. The efforts paid off as she enrolled herself in
the electrical trade. By the end of the course she is completely transformed, brimming with
confidence and ready to take on life. She is now placed with Rabya Basri Hospital,
Kankarbagh and earning `3000 per month. ilEAD has fulfilled her dreams, it‘s true that ―It‘s
Never Too Late‘‘ and she is the perfect example for this.

Case Study12
Alpna Kumari, aged 21 years, belong to SC sect has completed her matriculation. Her family
income is only 1200 per month and there are 6 family members. When she heard that there is
an institute in Patna, providing training of nursing (PCMA) free of cost, and then she decided
to take admission in nursing. After that she tore flat beans from klippers and sold in market
for three months. Whatever money she collected was enough for her to go at training center
from her village. She used to plant crops, plough the land and she has also done work of
labour. Four years after the death of her mother, her father become disinterested in earning
money or doing any work. She has two brothers and two sisters. After her mother‘s death, her
family didn‘t have money to do her shradh but it was necessary to do. She is third to an elder
sister and an elder brother. To get her elder sister married today her whole family is in debt.
Her brother Abhay Kumar who has taken training in Hospitality services from iLEAD is very
happy while working as a Waitor in Kapil Dev‘s Elevens. Her big brother is working as a
musician in marriage party and thereby managing the family. Initially the training was not
easy to understand and she also got afraid when heard about English in institute. Many times,
she tried to skip classes but was impressed by the unique way of explaining in local language
by the instructors of iLEAD. This kept her motivated for the rest of the training period.
Today, she is earning near about Rs.- 3000-3200/- in Kumar Ortho, Patna. With the help of
that financial condition of her family is improving. She has done all arrangement on her own
in her brother‘s marriage because her father was not interested, he didn‘t desire to do any
work because of mother‘s death and she played the role of a mother for his brother. Everyone
in her village was surprised by seeing that. She used to keep hens and goats to sell their milk
to get money. And it was her everyday work to bring wood from other village to make food.
She used to work as a hawker seasonally to sell ice-cream, Jhalmuri and Samosa in different
village to make money for my family.

Case Study 13
Gazala Amin, 24 years of age, belongs to Muslim sect and has completed only 8th standard of
his education. He is a member of big family comprising of 10 members. As no one is
employed neither do they have land to cultivate so the family income is as low as 1000 per
month. He happens to be the eldest in the family and with great struggle he completed his
study up to intermediate. After that due to economic reasons and the situation in the house he
could not continue with his studies further, and was compelled to pick up a job for just 500 at
a local school.
During his days when he was facing these problems he came in touch with two of his friends
who were iLead pass outs of the Hospitality batch and were placed, they suggested to him to
get himself enrolled and undergo training .He took the advice and joined iLEAD. He is proud
to have made the decision to go for iLEAD. Today he is reaping the fruit of success and is at
present employed with one of the best Restaurant (Bisaka Restaurant) in the Industry and he
is also able to help the family back home he also does not have to cook or pay for the food as
he provided with all his meals besides his salary. He also earns tips to the tune of Rs150/-per
day. His salary is only 2500 per month but with the help of tips his monthly income is 6500
per month.

Case Study 14
Rani Devi aged 25 years belongs to SC sect and worked in Polio program part-time. She is a
member of 5 family members and her family‘s monthly income is 1200 per month. Polio
program, stitching & embroidery, part time job in Municipal Corporation defines her
character to support her family. Before joining iLEAD she was dependent on her in laws as
her husband was unemployed. After she was placed now she lives independently with
husband and kids. During a polio program she met a private teacher who informed her about
iLEAD & its program, she visited iLEAD center and got more information about iLEAD
program and took admission in Patient care & Medical Assistance. After being trained at the
institute and being sent for on job in one of the best nursing home that gave her the chance to
come across some of the best cases, and work beside some of the best doctors, that enabled
her to polish up her expertise, it also removed all the fears that she had at the start. Now she is
working with Adarsh Hospital, Kankarbagh, Patna.

Case Study 15
Sharda Kumari, 25 years of age has done her matriculation belongs to SC sect and is a
member in the family of 08. Her family income is 1000 per month. She did tuition for
Nursery, L.K.G.&U.K.G to support herself and her family. She met a iLEAD student who
informed her about iLEAD & its programs and she visited iLEAD center and got more
information about iLEAD & its program and took admission in Patient care & Medical
Assistance. After being trained at the institute and being sent for on job in one of the best
nursing home that gave her the chance to come across some of the best cases, and work
beside some of the best doctors, that enabled her to polish up her expertise. It also removed
all the fears that she had at the start. She is now placed as ward attendant in Adarsh Hospital,
Kankarbagh, Patna on a salary of 1200 per month.

Case Study 16
Vishwanath Rana aged 27 years has completed his studies till 9th standard and belongs to
OBC sect. he has five members in his family and his family income is about 1500 per month.
The major source of his family income is self-employment. Before coming to iLEAD, he was
working as sales man with Dealer ship of Exide Battery. His father is working as Night
Guard in salary of 1500. He came to know about iLEAD with the help of Mr.Manoj (Nidan –
Local N.G.O). He got 1st placement at Chandan Automobile through iLEAD as a supervisor
with the salary of Rs.1500/- but he rejected that offer because he wanted to start his career
from root base, so he joined as Assistant Mechanic at the same place for the Rs.800/-. After
this placement, he got interested in Automobile. In the form of 2nd placement, he joined as an
Asst. Mechanic at K.P.T.V.S at the salary of Rs.900/-. Because of his dedication and honesty
toward work, supervisor of that company send her to Ranchi (Jharkhand) for the Product
Training, after watching my dedication, again they sent him for the further training in
‗APACHE‘ (T.V.S model) in Oct.07. After going through my performance and dedication in
both the training, they send him for the further Expert Training at Ranchi. It was pleasure for
him that among 15 people, he got 1st position. Because of his performance in training,
Engineers of T.V.S Company again sent him to Bangalore for the training on the behalf of
T.V.S Company. There were total 13 people from Bihar and Jharkhand, among that he got 1st
position. After all, today he is getting Rs.4000/- in the form of salary in K.P.TVS. He has
covered this journey from Assistant Mechanic to Senior Mechanic in just one and half year. It
was memorable day of life when he gave Rs.20, 000/- in my Niece‘s marriage. He has been
helping iLEAD to mobilize students and also for the Guest lecture.

Case Study 17
Bablu Kumar Paswan aged 25 years has completed his matriculation and belongs to SC sect.
He has four members in his family and the family income is 3000. The major source of his
family income is self-employment. His father is no more, so before joining iLEAD, he was
working as a Labour. He came to know about iLEAD with the help of his friend who was the
student of iLEAD. As he is married and today at the post of Service Technician in Electrical
Shop (Boring Road), he is getting Rs.3500/- as salary. He is helping his family financially
also.
It was very hard for him and his family to survive after the death of his father.

Case Study 18
Kailash Kumar aged 20 years has completed Intermediate belongs to OBC sect. His family
members are four in number and the monthly family income is `4000. The major source of
income is self-employment (labour). After losing his father he discontinued his studies after
intermediate because his family was big and the source of income was less, even his family
could not afford his study expenses, seeing all the situation he started feeling guilty because
he was not able to do anything and day by day situation became worst, sometime they used to
sleep without having our dinner, so he decided to contribute to my family income and I
started working as a labour. He came to know about iLEAD during a community
mobilization drive conducted by iLEAD members. The faculty at iLEAD‘S Patna centre
encouraged me towards a new life and see the future ahead in new light which reflects the
basic philosophy of iLEAD- bringing disadvantaged youth into the mainstream through skill
enhancement and personality development. The efforts paid off as I gradually and steadily
began taking life more positively, and went on to take a course on electrical. By the end of
the course I completely transformed, brimming with confidence and ready to take on life.
Now he is placed in an electrical shop with a monthly salary of `3500. Sonow he is
contributing to the family income and has transformed.

Case Study 19
Neha Kumari aged 20 years belongs to OBC sect has qualified Intermediate. As her father is
no more, so after completion of Intermediate, she left her study due to financial problem and
was searching for job to help her family sustain. One of her neighbours who came to know
about iLEAD through Canopy located by iLEAD Faculties, told her about iLEAD in detail
and asked to join iLEAD to take training in ITES. Now being trained in iLEAD she is the
breadwinner of her family. Today she is working as a Data Entry Operator at IDEA
(Telecom) Office and getting salary of `3500/-. She is also paying the fees of her two
younger brothers and also helping her family.

Case Study 20
Dharmendra Kumar aged 25 years belongs to SC sect and has qualified his matriculation. He
is a resident of Gopalpur, Naubatpur, Patna. His family is a large family of 10 members. His
monthly income is `1000 per month. The major source of income of his family is daily wage
in agriculture. He was working as a daily wages labour before joining iLEAD. It was very
hard to handle the income of family because he is married & has 2 daughters living in joint
family. So it was very hard to get money for the fooding of his family, it was very hard for
his father as a labour to earn money in village and he was elder son, so it was his
responsibility to take care of family members. His father had taken debt in his sister‘s
marriage and have been recovering the debt till now, but it will be recovered soon because he
has got job in good hotel as a waiter. He came to know about iLEAD with the help of
C.M.D. conducted in his village Gopalpur at evening 8.00 P.M. Many people gathered at the
time of C.M.D., he was also among them. C.M.D. gave a good impact on the people of his
village and on the next day he went to iLEAD to take information with few people of his
village, who were also working with him as a labour. iLEAD has helped him groom as a
better person. He is also become well versed in Computers. Now he feel proud of himself as
he is helping his family by recovering the debt which was taken by his father in his sister‘s
marriage, even he has taken a room in Patna to live. He is getting `1500/- as a salary & `60-
70/- per day as tips in Royal Inn, Boring Road, Patna.

4.3 Analysis of Case Studies
All the 20 cases were content analysed which resulted into the following:
1. Personal Background: The respondent‘s personal background includes their
educational qualification, family size, social status (caste), family income, and source
of income. Most of the respondents are school drop-outs and they were engaged in
non-skilled labour. Majority of the respondents belong to the marginalized
communities and this shows that still though the government boast of inclusion of the
marginalized communities in the education system, it has still a long way to go.
Majority of the respondents belong to large family (size). Their family income is very
low and most of the family members are also engaged as daily wage labour.
2. Description of life before iLEAD: A short description of the socio-economic condition
of the family and the activities the respondent was indulged in before joining iLEAD.
The respondents are of poor economic background. Most of them had no employment
and were unproductive in terms of income. The respondent faced many hardships as
such as loss of father, working for a meager income of `500-600. Some of the
respondents also faced medical problems and that hampered their normal routine of
life. The families of the respondents were in debt for different reasons viz. marriage,
sickness etc.
3. Lead to iLEAD: How the respondents came to know about iLEAD, either through the
iLEAD‘s Community Mobilisation Drive (CMD) or some other source. The other
sources like Church is also instrumental in counseling the school drop-out rural youth
to join iLEAD. Canopies displaying the iLEAD logo and description at different
places are also helpful in spreading the iLEAD message. The passed out placed
students of iLEAD are the examples of success of the intervention and they inspire
and motivate their neighbours or other rural youths to follow their route to success.
4. Aspirations: The sample of the respondent is rural youth who are school drop-out and
by undergoing the iLEAD process they aspire to fulfill their dreams. Kanhaiya, a born
handicapped was hopeless from his life. Due to poor economic condition of his family
he has to drop-out from the school in 8th standard. But after training with iLEAD he is
now running his own electrical shop. Similarly those who have dropped their studies
due to poverty are now fulfilling their aspirations.
5. Constraints: Life‘s not so easy for the unemployed and marginalized rural youth due
non-availability of opportunities as well as infrastructure in rural areas. Though
enrolled in iLEAD they had to face constraints like unavailability of transport and
communication system. At the same time due to their poor economic condition they
have to work along with training in iLEAD. Large family size also created
6. Facilitators: The most important is the role of the facilitator- the iLEAD training
faculty. It‘s very hard to train a school-drop out youth who has no interest in studies.
So the role of the facilitator is to keep the trainees constantly motivated and engage
them through various practical activities. Extra-curricular activities are also organized
for the all-round development of the trainee viz. celebration of Women‘s day etc. The
faculty at iLEAD takes specific care for personality grooming of the trainee to make
them comfortable at the work place.

Educational qualification
50%
45%
45%
40%
35%
30%
30%
25%
25%
20%
15%
10%
5%
0%
Below Matriculation Intermediate
matriculation & above
Fig.4.2.1 Education of Respondents
Respondent's sect
70%
60%
60%
50%
40%
30% 25%
20%
10%
10% 5%
0%
OBC SC Christian Muslim
Fig. 4.2.2 Respondent’s Sect
The Graph 4.2.1 shows the educational qualification of respondents. 30% of the respondents
are below matriculation, 45% have passed their matriculation and only 25% of the
respondents have passed intermediate. This shows that the school drop-out is very high and
75% of the respondents were not able to complete even their schooling.

The Graph 4.2.2 shows the respondent‘s sect. Here it is observed that the majority of the
respondents are from the SC sect of the society and then OBC. When one compares the
educational qualification against the sect of the respondent, it was found that it‘s the SC sect
which is least qualified followed by the OBC sect. This also calls for urgent attention of the
policy makers towards boosting the inclusion of these marginalised sects.
70% 65%
60%
50%
Respomdents
40%
30%
20%
20% 15%
10%
0%
upto 3 4 to 6 more than 6
Family Size
Fig. 4.2.3 Family Size of the Respondents
The Graph 4.3.3 shows the family size of the respondents. The respondent‘s mostly belonged
to large families consisting of 4 to 6 family members. 65% of the respondents are from
family size group 4 to 6. This implies that large family size is also the reason behind their
socio-economic conditions. 20% of the respondents have as large as 10 members in the
family whereas only 15% of the respondents belong to the small family that is up to 3 family
members.

70%
60%
60% 55%
50%
Respondents
40%
40% Before iLEAD
30%
30% After iLEAD
Linear (Before iLEAD)
20% 15%
Linear (After iLEAD)
10%
0%
0%
below 3000 3000-6000 above 6000
Family Income (`)
Fig. 4.2.4 Family Income Status Before and After iLEAD
The above figure shows the impact of iLEAD on the family income. The trend line clearly
shows the increase in the family income of the respondents after getting placed from iLEAD.
It can be observed that percentage of respondents who‘s family income was below `3000
before joining iLEAD decreased from 60% to 15% only. Similarly the percentage of
respondent‘s whose family income was between `3000-6000 before iLEAD has increased to
55% from the previous 40% i.e. this income group is increased by 15%. But the substantial
difference can be observed in the final category of Income group (above `6000), the
percentage of Respondents in this category has shoot up from 0% to 30%. So, iLEAD does
improve the family income and thus help in improving the overall livelihood of respondent.

Impact on Trainees
Parameters Pre- Training Post- Training

Core Employable Skills None Certified skilled labour
Monthly income None Prescribed minimum wages
plus productivity linked
bonuses
Social Security (PF, Bonuses) None Covered as per the Company
policy
Life Management Skills/Soft None Greater Awareness
Skills
Table 4.2.1 Impact on Trainees
Impact on Industry
Before Training After training
Industry Trainees undergo

recruits raw training for 30
untrained working days –
persons (0% Achieve more
efficiency) efficiency
Industry recruits
Industry trains trained youth and
new recruits for 4 trains them further
weeks on shop floor for
adaptation
New Recruit New Recruit placed in

placed in production line (
production line improved efficiency)
(55% efficiency)
Fig. 4.2.5 Impact on Industry

5. Conclusion, recommendation & suggestions

5.1 Conclusion
This is the final chapter of the thesis and it sums up the complete experience of literature
review and data analysis. It also depicts the challenges for skill development and ways to
overcome based on this study.
India‘s rapid economic growth and development cannot continue to miss out the rural poor.
The challenge is to make this growth more inclusive. India‘s booming economy has been
experiencing a high annual growth rate of over 8 per cent triggering new employment
opportunities. This impressive growth rate, however, has not been matched with availability
of a competent workforce which can exploit the emerging opportunities. The country‘s
education and training efforts are, for the most part, inadequate to prepare the young for the
emerging market demands and providing value addition to existing jobs. Apart from technical
skills, emphasis today is also on factors like linguistic and communication skills, computer
literacy and presentable personality. This is just one indicator of rapidly changing economy
that will create new challenges for youth entering the workforce. The need for a more flexible
and mobile workforce will require new skills and greater adaptability among youth.
iLEAD reaches out to educationally marginalised and vulnerable youth of 18 to 25 years
through courses attuned to the demands and needs of the industry leading to more relevant
employment opportunities thus leading to higher returns. This unique project seeks to address
the gap between sustained, gainful employment opportunities and existing skill levels among
marginalised youth by building their capacities in market oriented trades and also in related
soft-skills. The design of the iLEAD project ensures a mutually beneficial process for the
industry and the community. The youth and their families gain from sustained employment
opportunities and better economic returns while the industry profits from the steady

availability of better trained and skilled human resources who meet emerging requirements
and dynamic work situations. It has also brought about a change in attitude within families
and communities at large on aspects related to gender, employment, choice of vocations, etc.
As a result of its impact and the strong reputation built in such a short duration, the iLEAD
project has had an impact on the Government and related agencies to re look at the vocational
education system. The project thus addresses the issue of unemployment and
underemployment in the long-term. The study affirms the uniqueness claimed by the iLEAD
project in its bid to train and skill rural youth. The Patna centre has already got funded from
SGSY, this shows the government‘s belief in the iLEAD process.
5.2 Recommendations & Suggestions
Based on the study various challenges for Skill Development and ways to overcome are:
• There is a need to match the inclination of the candidate with the courses being offered
by the institute. Generally at the time of admission for a vocational course, the candidate may
choose the course depending on the options explored by his/her peers. Hence it is important
that at the time of admission the candidate is counselled in understanding his/her
preference/inclination in the trades in which he/she can excel. It should be an informed
choice rather than a biased decision. Also the course selection by the institute should be based
on demand in the market.
• Regular Exposure visits to the industry should be part of the training process. A good
mix of theory and practice helps in preparing the youth for a competitive job market. Besides
focusing on technical aspects, focus on improving the soft skills and life skills is also
important.

• Proper mobilization of the candidates through good rapport with the community should
be done (both parents and candidates need to be counselled). It would help prevent students
from dropping out and also maintain inflow of candidates at regular intervals (when new
batches start)
• Developing a portal/data base of the candidates enrolled in different courses and
tracking their performance in terms of last employer, updated contact details and additional
skills acquired after completing the course from the institute. Generally the institutes keep
track of the candidates enrolled in the current batch but it is imperative to closely monitor the
growth of candidates so that corrective measures can be taken in case there is a drop out.
Frequent drop outs may have a negative effect on the future batch as well for the candidate
him/herself. Pre and post-placement career counselling and guidance should be provided to
control the high turnover of youth from the job market and their growth in industry. Revival
of the new generation Employment Exchange with the use of technology can be thought.
• Efforts are required in recruiting the trainers with hands on experience in their
respective trades. This will ensure not only keeping the candidates abreast with the rapidly
changing market trends and requirements. Retaining current staff and providing them with
best matched salaries in their area of specialization is also important.
• 'Virtual Learning Classes/sessions' could be considered as a strategy to keep running
costs low and giving best inputs to the candidates. Experiences of ‗Mobile Training Vans‘ as
implemented by few institutes can also be looked at.
• It is important for the institutes offering skill development training to collaborate with
the retail joints/industry. One can also run customized courses for them if they agree to
employ a good number of candidates in their units in return. Skill training that cannot offer a

job to the youth is of no use, hence it is important for the institutes to have a focus on
placement from the beginning of the course.
• Recognition of the certificates issued by NGOs, Institutes - Since many of them are
running the skill development programmes but may not have tie-ups with Government,
Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) or any other authorized institutes, there is a possibility of
their certificates not getting recognition in the market. If we look at this issue from the
perspective of the youth, after spending the time and resources in persuing a course if you
realize later that the certificate does not hold any importance in the market, all efforts will go
in vain.

References
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Impact of iLEAD as a Livelihood Strategy for Rural Youth.

Dissertation submitted to the Central University of Bihar

in partial fulfilment of the course work in Masters in Development Studies

Under the Guidance and Supervision of

DR. RAJESHWAR MISHRA

CENTRAL UNIVERSITY OF BIHAR

SCHOOL OF SOCIAL SCIENCES AND POLICY

CENTRE FOR DEVELOPMENT STUDIES

1.1 : Background………………………………………………………………. 02-18

2. Literature Review 27-40

2.1: Who are Rural Youth? ................................................................................ 28-30

3.1: Context of the Research………………………………………………….. 42-47

4. iLEAD Patna Centre 51-80

4.1: Patna iLEAD- a look……………………………………………………… 52-54

5. Conclusion, recommendation, suggestions 81-85

5.1: Conclusion………………………………………………………………… 82-83

Map 3.1.1: Aide-et-Action International Presence…………………………….. 42

Map 3.1.2: Aide-et-Action International Presence (projects & offices)………. 44

Map 3.1.3: District Map of Patna……………………………………………… 45

Map 3.1.4: Map of iLEAD centres in India…………………………………… 47

Table 4.2.1: Impact on trainees………………………………………………. 80

Fig. 1.1: Improving Livelihood the iLEAD way………………………….. 18

Fig. 3.2.1: Distribution of Case Studies Trade Wise………………………… 48

Fig. 3.2.2: Distribution of Case Studies Gender Wise………………………. 48

Fig. 4.2.1: Education of Respondents……………………………………….. 77

Fig. 4.2.2: Respondent’s Sect……………………………………………….. 77

Fig. 4.2.3: Family Size of the Respondents…………………………………. 78

Fig. 4.2.4: Family Income Status before & after iLEAD…………………... 79

Fig. 4.2.5: Impact on Industry……………………………………………….. 80

BTC- Bodoland Territorial Council

CII- Confederation of Indian Industry

CMD- Community Mobilisation Drive

CSR- Corporate Social Responsibility

EPA- Employability Potential Assessment

GDP- Gross Domestic Product

GGB-Green Grain Bank

iLEAD- Institute for Livelihood Education and Development

IDR- International Development Report

IYY- International Year of Youth

ITeS- Information Technology enabled Services

ITI- Industrial Training Institute

LABS- Livelihood Advanced Business Schools

LMIS - Labour Market Information System

MIS- Managament Information System

NABARD - National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development

NGO- Non- Governmental Organisation

PCMA- Patient Care & Medical Assistance

PARFI - Pan IIT Reach for India

PoA- Programme of Action

RUDSETI- Rural Development and Self- Employment Training Institutes

SGSY- Swarnajayanti Gram Swarojgar Yojana

SGRY- Sampoorna Grameen Rojgaar Yojana

SHG- Self- Help Groups

TRYSEM- Training for Rural Youth for Self Employment

UN- United Nations

CUB, April 2011

Pulkesh Pulak | CUB0901014019/DISSERTATION/DS 1

Youth- Asset for the country

(as per WHO definition) live in Asia.

of opportunity, called India‘s demographic dividend. The Demographic dividend consists of

of non-working population to working population will continue to be low, giving India a

also be joining the league of ageing economies. (Planning Commission, 2008)