Education and Employability
Assembling the Future: Reskilling India’s Workforce in the New Manufacturing Age
24 Jul 2025
As India’s economy transforms through sectoral growth and digitization, skill requirements are rapidly evolving. Traditional one-size-fits-all skilling approaches are no longer adequate to meet the dynamic needs of high-growth sectors. As a result, verticalized and industry-specific skilling models are gaining traction - a shift increasingly recognized by both service providers and employers.
To explore this shift, we are deep diving into specific vertical themes through a multi-part newsletter series that unpacks the evolving skilling landscape and focuses on analyzing and decoding workforce trends.
We begin with the manufacturing sector, which is undergoing a significant transformation, driven by automation, global supply chain shifts, and policy initiatives. The industry is a massive engine of employment and economic activity, with over 98M workers across nine sub-segments. Of these, 17.6M are white collar roles, highlighting the growing complexity and sophistication of this sector.
As global supply chains diversify, India is fast emerging as a preferred manufacturing destination. Leading global players are shifting operations from China and Southeast Asia to India, attracted by cost advantages, government incentives, and a growing consumer base. This shift demands a workforce ready for advanced, tech-enabled manufacturing roles.
In this blog, we identify and analyze key areas within manufacturing that present significant opportunities for workforce training and development.
Segmentation of manufacturing sector
Nine key segments define India's manufacturing landscape, including textiles, automotive and auto components, and chemicals. Among these segments, automotive and auto components and electronics hardware manufacturing emerge as key sectors, based on five parameters: sector growth, number of workers, worker growth, intensity of tech disruption, and governmnet focus. Together these two sectors employ 19M people. 
Exhibit 1: Nine key segments in the manufacturing sector

Government investments
The Indian government is pursuing a comprehensive manufacturing strategy, deploying substantial financial resources across key industrial sectors to strengthen domestic production capabilities and reduce import dependence. This strategic approach spans multiple industries, with significant investments concentrated in two critical sectors.
The automobile sector has received US$ 4.4B in funding in recent years, primarily through the Production-Linked Incentives (PLI) scheme targeting 750K jobs and US$ 5.7B in foreign investment, alongside electric vehicle promotion initiatives.
The electronics manufacturing sector commands US$ 24.1B in government investment. The Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme for electronics manufacturing in India aims to boost domestic production and attract large investments in the sector. Additional schemes, including the Electronics Component Manufacturing initiative (US$ 2.7B), further reinforce this commitment.
Together, these investments total over US$ 28B in government-led investments across the automobile and electronics sectors - underscoring India’s commitment to building globally competitive manufacturing hubs.
Exhibit 2: The Indian government has launched several schemes to support the manufacturing industry
Key training opportunities
Moving forward, within these sectors, four training and learning opportunities stand out, based on existing whitespace and propensity to deliver digitally. These include:
  • Creating future leaders from middle managers through business, leadership, and tech training enabling them to leverage AI
  • Training on next-gen skills and design tools like chip design, robotic programming, and CAD / CAM software training
  • Building new-age manufacturing workers with tech readiness, soft skills, and safety training
  • Reskilling post-sales service providers, especially for EVs and smart appliances
Exhibit 3: Key training opportunities in automotive and electronics
Opportunity for digital skilling platforms in manufacturing
Digital skilling presents a significant untapped opportunity in manufacturing. While skilling is critical to enhancing productivity, safety, and competitiveness in the sector, there is a notable lack of scaled, digital-first platforms tailored to the unique needs of the manufacturing workforce. Most existing solutions remain fragmented, serve niche use cases, or are generalist enterprise learning platforms that do not fully address manufacturing-specific requirements.
This creates a white space for end-to-end, tech-enabled skilling platforms that integrate immersive technologies like AR / VR for hands-on simulation, machine operation, and safety training - essential components for upskilling both blue- and grey-collar workers. A full-stack offering that spans content, certification, assessments, and job placement can unlock large-scale adoption and bridge the capability gap in this vital sector.
Conclusion
To truly realize India’s manufacturing potential, bridging the skilling gap is essential, especially with agile, digital-first solutions. As the sector transforms through technological disruption, global supply chain shifts, and increasing government support, the workforce must evolve in parallel. The growing demand for EVs, semiconductors, and advanced electronics is redefining roles across factory floors, engineering teams, and service networks. This calls for continuous upskilling in both technical and soft skills, tailored to the unique needs of each segment. The opportunity is clear - now is the time to invest in scalable, future-ready skilling models that can empower India’s workforce and unlock long-term growth.
How can Praxis help?

At Praxis, we help clients decode evolving workforce trends and design future-ready skilling strategies aligned with sectoral shifts. Our approach combines deep sector insights with data-driven frameworks to identify critical skill gaps, evaluate scalable delivery models, and craft targeted interventions. We work closely with skilling institutions, corporates, and ecosystem players to build high-impact, sustainable talent development solutions across sectors such as manufacturing, healthcare, and BFSI.


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