National Action Plan for Skill Training of Persons with Disabilities launched in New Delhi

National Action Plan for Skill Training of Persons with Disabilities was launched in New Delhi on 21 March 2015.
The National Action Plan is a partnership between the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) and Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disability for skilling 2.5 million Persons with Disability (PwD) over seven years between 2015 and 2022.
The Plan was jointly launched by the Minister of State (IC), Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship Rajiv Pratap Rudy and the Union Minister for Social Justice and Empowerment Thaawar Chand Gehlot.

The National Action Plan (NAP) seeks to provide a synergistic framework for people with disability, for improving vocational training and employment opportunities for them with the eventual goal of providing them with livelihoods and independence. The plan envisages use of Information Technology for content, training delivery and employer connect.

The plan is of significant importance for overall development of PwDs since according to census 2011, there are 2.68 Crore PwDs in India. Among them about 1.34 crore persons are in the employable age of 15 to 59 years.
According to a United Nations (UN) report unemployment rate among PwDS is usually double that of the general population and often as high as 80% in Asia-Pacific region.