With the 5G rollout, India requires a skilled workforce, and the Telecom Sector Skill Council (TSSC) announced on Tuesday that it will place over 1.25 lakh candidates across the industry through placement initiatives and training labs.

The Council also stated that it will establish at least 50 new training labs and centers of excellence (CoEs) for various telecom job roles across India.

The TSSC announced a five-year partnership with IIT Hyderabad’s Technology Innovation Hub on Autonomous Navigation (TiHAN) that will focus on joint projects in skilling in emerging technologies such as 5G and its use cases, the internet of things (IoT), cloud, AI/ML, and others, IANS reported from New Delhi.

“It’s not just 5G; upcoming semiconductor technologies and the growth of electronics manufacturing in the country will also necessitate a variety of skills that students must be familiar with,” said K Rajaraman, Secretary of Telecommunications (DoT).

According to the Council, the new training labs and CoEs will be established in a “hub and spoke model” at ITIs and premier universities.

As the industry’s apex body for telecom skills, TSSC has expanded into new business areas such as CoE development, international skill development programs, placements, and paid programs.

“5G technology is expected to boost the Indian economy by $450 billion between 2023 and 2040 and we are currently facing an acute shortage of about 1.4 lakh workers in 5G and its allied technologies,” said Arvind Bali, CEO, of TSSC.

With DoT support, TSSC will also train 1 lakh youth in 5G and related technologies over the next three years.

“We have trained over 10 lakh candidates in various roles catering to the telecom industry demand,” Bali informed.