Skill Gap and Programme Requirement:A Review of Food Processing Sector in Assam

Assam has an establishment of 3,900 registered manufacturing units. Most of the units are associated with food processing activities such as flour mills, food and fruit processing etc., varying from medium to small sized units. Some of the units are focused on the production of cakes and biscuits for large multinationals namely, Britannia and GlaxoSmithKline. The manufacturing units employed around 1.4 lakh people in Assam and still, there is a shortage of adequate manpower. The present paper attempts to assess the requirement of skills and talent in the food processing sector of Assam due to the competition and growth opportunities in this sector. The purpose of the paper is to identify the type of skilling required in the area of food processing sector in Assam. Secondly, it will also analyse the skill gap and the programme requirement for the development of skills. In order to achieve the objectives, secondary data is collected. Secondary data from the census, the economic survey of Assam, and National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) in the area of food processing sector is used to fulfill the study objectives.