Gandhinagar, April 21 – Union Minister Jayant Chaudhary on Monday inaugurated the PDEU-NSDC Centre of Excellence for Skill Development at Pandit Deendayal Energy University (PDEU) in Gandhinagar. The centre, established in partnership with the National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC), aims to equip Indian youth with hands-on skills in emerging sectors such as semiconductor manufacturing, renewable energy, and artificial intelligence (AI).
As per agency report, the new initiative is designed to provide advanced training in future-critical technologies, giving students real-world exposure to high-tech manufacturing and digital domains. Speaking at the event, Minister of State for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship Jayant Chaudhary emphasized the importance of collaboration between academia and industry and urged universities across the country to engage with their alumni networks for stronger institutional development.
The Centre of Excellence will offer more than 40 online and hybrid courses, covering a wide range of topics such as semiconductor fabrication, renewable and non-renewable energy, smart manufacturing, embedded systems, robotics, AI, machine learning, cloud computing, blockchain, and VLSI design. The training for semiconductor technologies has already commenced, and further infrastructure, including domain-specific laboratories, is being added to enhance capacities in smart and clean technologies.
Professor Sunder S Manoharan, Director General of PDEU, announced during the event that the Centre of Excellence will train professionals for upcoming semiconductor assembly operations at the Micron Technology plant in Sanand, near Ahmedabad. Micron, a US-based chipmaker, is setting up one of India's key semiconductor manufacturing facilities, and this centre is expected to play a vital role in developing a skilled workforce for the project.
The initiative marks a significant step in aligning India’s talent development with the country’s broader ambitions in technology-driven growth and self-reliance in semiconductor manufacturing.
