The Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) today formally recognised 19 reputed institutions as Centres of Excellence-Skills (CoE-Skills). The Certificates of Recognition were presented by Smt. Debashree Mukherjee, Secretary, MSDE, during a ceremony held at Kaushal Bhawan, New Delhi. The recognition is valid from 9 October 2026 to 8 October 2029.
The institutions have been empanelled through the Green Channel provided under the Guidelines for Empanelment of Centres of Excellence-Skills and Vocational Training Centres. The mechanism offers an expedited route for eligible institutions of established standing, including Institutes of National Importance, ITIs upgraded under PM-SETU, and Skilling Centres of Excellence operated or empanelled by Central Ministries, Departments and State Governments. Under this route, institutions submit essential information and their applications are placed directly before the Executive Committee for consideration, without nomination or the regular evaluation process. The mechanism seeks to accelerate empanelment of reputed and high-quality institutions through a streamlined approval process.
The Guidelines were unveiled on 15 July 2026 by Shri Jayant Chaudhary, Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship and Minister of State for Education, Government of India, during the World Youth Skills Day celebrations at Kaushal Bhawan, New Delhi. The Guidelines seek to strengthen the skilling ecosystem through permanent, advanced and industry-aligned training institutions supported by modern infrastructure, technology and strong industry partnerships.
Speaking on the occasion, Smt. Debashree Mukherjee, Secretary, MSDE, said: “The empanelment of these 19 institutions as Centres of Excellence-Skills marks an important step towards building a trusted national network of permanent, advanced and industry-responsive skilling institutions. We are building a repository of the country’s most reputed institutions, distinguished by their domain expertise and delivery excellence, to strengthen skill development outcomes while making skilling aspirational for our youth. These Centres can play a pivotal role in delivering high-quality training, supporting trainers and assessors, strengthening industry linkages and improving outcomes for learners. We look forward to working closely with these institutions to make advanced and future-ready skilling accessible across sectors and regions.”
A CoE-Skills is envisaged as a permanent, advanced and sector-focused training centre capable of delivering high-quality, industry-aligned and outcome-oriented skill training. CoE-Skills may undertake functions spanning advanced and technology-enabled training, assessment, mentorship and career coaching, Training of Trainers and Assessors, industry engagement, and achievement and tracking of post-training outcomes. Their scheme-agnostic empanelment is intended to establish a long-term association and enable optimum utilisation of existing infrastructure, equipment, trainers, assessors and institutional capacity.
The recognition provides formal acknowledgement by MSDE of these institutions’ capabilities within the national skilling ecosystem. Empanelled Centres may be leveraged for skill development initiatives of MSDE, other Central Ministries, State Governments, industry, CSR initiatives and other stakeholders, subject to applicable programme guidelines.
By bringing high-quality institutions and specialised centres into a common national framework, the CoE-Skills initiative will help strengthen advanced training capacity, facilitate wider sharing of institutional expertise and promote credible, industry-responsive and outcome-oriented skilling across the country.
Institutions recognised as Centres of Excellence-Skills
Hydro & Renewable Energy Department, IIT Roorkee, Uttarakhand
National Institute of Solar Energy, Gurugram, Haryana
National Institute of Wind Energy, Chennai, Tamil Nadu
National Institute of Wind Energy, Kayathar, Tamil Nadu
Sardar Swaran Singh National Institute of Renewable Energy, Kapurthala, Punjab
Indian Railways Institute of Civil Engineering, Pune, Maharashtra
National Institute of Hydrography, Vasco da Gama, Goa
Sant Shiromani Ravidas Global Skills Park, Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh
Defence Institute of Advanced Technology, Pune, Maharashtra
National Institute of Secondary Steel Technology, Fatehgarh Sahib, Punjab
INS Shivaji Premier Training Institute for Marine Engineers of the Indian Navy, Pune, Maharashtra
Institute of Hotel Management Catering Technology & Applied Nutrition, Bhubaneswar, Odisha
National Institute of Agricultural Extension Management, Hyderabad, Telangana