AskSarathi

Action turns dreams into goals and goals into milestones, believing that three game-changers embarked on a journey in 2008. Dr. Sumana Chakraborty, Dental Surgeon & Process Trainer, Suranjana Das, Electrical Engineer & Creative Writer, and Anup Sharma, IT Developer & Business Analyst, dreamt of effecting positive change on a grassroots level. With GDP growing at 8% annually till 2022, India will create 500 million jobs within the next decade, 75% of which will be skill-based. However, many remain unemployed. Why this gap? This trio of doers identified the challenges as a lack of relevant training; a backdated curriculum that does not teach the skills required in present job markets; shortage of qualified teachers and experts; lack of experiential learning methods; the absence of private sector involvement in skill development initiatives. They proactively launched AskSarathi, a student-focused, virtual educational community that bridges gaps between learners, trainers, and corporates providing job-oriented training, resources, and opportunities, bringing learners and experts together on one virtual platform to network, share knowledge, and learn new skills. Delivering on its promise to empower India’s youth, AskSarathi has structured its Learn To Earn Programme; AI-empowered, short duration, inexpensive, and adaptive course modules that identify a learner's natural abilities to hone them further; a package of inter-related skills drawn from a dynamic curriculum that prepare candidates for changing job market demands enabling them to take on multidisciplinary roles or launch a business. The Programme helps deserving students earn back their fees through paid internships obtained through academia-industry linkages, encouraging students to earn as they learn while getting the private sector to honor their corporate social responsibilities.