Israel approaches India to carry out recruitment drive for 10,000 construction workers: NSDC

Israel has approached India recently to carry out a recruitment drive again for 10,000 construction workers and 5,000 caregivers simultaneously to plug the skill gap in infrastructure and health sectors, the National Skill Development Corporation said.

This comes on the back of a similar request made by Israel earlier this year, the NSDC said.

The statement assumes significance as a media report on Tuesday claimed faulty selection under a bilateral jobs scheme, under which Indians would be taken to Israel to work in the construction sector, after over 1 lakh Palestinian workers were banned in the wake of the Hamas attack of October 7 last year.

Citing data from the Israeli Embassy, the report claimed that around 5,000 workers each have been recruited through two "pathways": Government-to-Government (G2G) handled by National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) and Business -to-Business (B2B) through private agencies overseen by the Ministry of External Affairs.

According to NSDC, the Population, Immigration, and Border Authority (PIBA) has put in a request across four specific job roles: Framework, Iron Bending, Plastering, and Ceramic Tiling.

A team from PIBA, comprising assessors, is to visit India in the coming week to carry out the necessary skill tests for selecting those who meet their criteria and skill requisites.

The second round of recruitment drive for construction workers is to take place in Maharashtra , it stated.

Further, Israel also requires 5,000 caregivers to boost its healthcare services. They have stated candidates who have completed at least their 10th standard along with holding a certificate issued by a recognised Indian institute and completing a caregiving course with at least 990 hours of on-the-job training can apply, NSDC stated.

In the first round of recruitment of construction workers for Israel, a total of 16,832 candidates appeared for skill tests in their trade out of which 10349 candidates were selected. Those selected will earn a salary of Rs 1.92 lakh per month, along with medical insurance, food, and accommodation. A bonus of Rs 16,515 per month is also provided to these candidates.

The National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) reached out to all states to carry out recruitment after the government-to-government (G2G) agreement was signed in November 2023. The first round of recruitment drive was carried out in Uttar Pradesh, Haryana and Telangana.

The agreement was signed after India and Israel initiated a Framework Agreement on Temporary Employment of Indians in May 2023.

All the candidates, going through the G2G pathway are mandated to undergo pre-departure orientation training. This encompasses a manual to understand Israeli culture and way of life and get accustomed to their new home.

This international mobility aligns with the government's vision to make India the Skill Capital of the world.

NSDC through this mandate creates a pool of talented and skilled individuals, provides the necessary training through its various training institutions, issues technical advisories for the Global South and creates knowledge exchange and capacity building with its international partners.