The Indian government announced a nationwide cloud and artificial intelligence (AI) skilling initiative in collaboration with Amazon Web Services (AWS) that aims to provide 150,000 persons with foundational AI training while 10,000 have been selected for intensive, job-ready AI skill training.
The initiative was announced Monday in collaboration with the National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC), under the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) and Cultus Education, an India based skilling and tech service company with Amazon Web Services (AWS).
According to the Indian government, It is a free, cohort-based workforce development training program that helps individuals build cloud computing skills and connects participants with employment opportunities at local employers.
The initiative by the government aims to address the challenges faced by youth in Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities such as limited access to globally recognised technical training, unable to connect with employers working in the technology field, and an absence of credentials needed to compete for cloud and AI roles.
It further mentioned that the programme will be delivered entirely online through Cultus Education and will cover all states and union territories, with a special focus to youth from Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities and underserved communities.
The participants will receive instructor-led training in areas including cloud infrastructure, networking, security, programming, relational databases and AI fundamentals.
Under the programme learners can enroll through an online registration portal and begin their journey with AWS digital training content, building foundational AI and cloud skills at their own pace. “Participants demonstrating readiness can progress to AWS re/Start, which provides structured, instructor-led training in cloud infrastructure, security, networking, and AI fundamentals,” an official release by the government said.
Graduates will earn an AWS Certification, an industry-recognised credential validating cloud computing skills and will gain access to qualified interview opportunities through connections with local employers.
On Independence day, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that one crore youth would be trained in AI skills over the next one year. Referring to the rapid expansion of artificial intelligence, he said the initiative would help equip India’s youth with the capability to lead in the world of AI.
The government has announced several initiatives in the last one year to upskill the country’s youth for an AI-enabled world.
In January 2026, the government launched YUVA AI for All, an AI literacy programme under the IndiaAI mission. It is a free course which takes a little over four hours and covers AI basics, how AI works, applications, responsible AI and the future of AI.
The ministry of skill development and entrepreneurship launched SOAR (Skilling for AI readiness) in July 2025. It initially offered four foundational courses- AI to be aware, AI to acquire, AI to aspire and AI for educators through the Skill India Digital Hub. It has since expanded to 50 AI and AI application oriented courses.
These initiatives and many more like these are an addition to the government’s broader efforts to equip the country’s youth with AI and digital skills.
The government’ s push for skilling comes amid a broader employment challenge. A recent Niti Aayog report titled “Reimagining skilling for Viksit Bharat@2047” estimated that 8.7 crore people are NEET youth, meaning they are not in education, employment or training while around 2 crore people or 3.1% of the labour force are unemployed. The report also highlighted that AI and automation are rapidly shaping job requirements, increasing the need to rethink how skilling is planned and delivered.
