A first-of-its-kind national public-private consortium involving FITT-IIT Delhi, Learning Links Foundation and Generation India to equip 190 government and aided institutions across India’s five major technology corridors
MUMBAI (India CSR): Dell Technologies announced the launch of “uDaan: Empowering India’s Future Workforce”, a national skilling and innovation programme, delivered through a consortium that brings together FITT-IIT Delhi, Learning Links Foundation, and Generation India Foundation to prepare 23,000 youth for careers in AI, cloud computing, and electronics manufacturing. A critical part of the program is to establish strong employer connections that support structured job placement pathways, real entrepreneurship opportunities and access to apprenticeship programs.
Built on Dell’s India AI Blueprint and operational across Dell Technologies’ India footprint, uDaan spans 100 ITIs and 90 Higher Education Institutes (HEIs) in Delhi NCR, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Chennai, and Pune. FITT-IIT Delhi will design and certify four industry-aligned curricula across AI Application Development, Cloud Development, Assembly Line Operations, and Field Technician that has been co-validated by over 40 employers across technology, electronics manufacturing, Global Capability Centres, and hyperscalers. Learning Links Foundation leads HEI delivery and institutional onboarding. Generation India Foundation drives ITI execution and employment linkages.
“India’s AI economy is creating roles faster than employers are able to fill them, and those roles require new skillsets. uDaan is how Dell is helping build pathways from education to employment at scale, in partnership with institutions that serve millions of young Indians. We believe skilling is a critical enabler of AI adoption, workforce readiness and long-term innovation and economic viability. This is technology driving human progress. This is Dell’s commitment to India’s future”, said Manish Gupta, President and Managing Director, Dell Technologies India.
Aligned with Skill India 2.0, NEP 2020, Make in India, and Digital India, uDaan is created from the outset as a replicable design by engaging state DVET and DTE officials from Year 1 and documenting its model for adoption by state governments and other corporations. The ambition is to establish uDaan as the national standard for how public-private partnerships can connect industry demand, institutional capability, and future-ready talent to sustainable economic opportunities.
Entrepreneurship is built into uDaan as a structured pathway. Through FITT-IIT Delhi’s innovation ecosystem, physical bootcamps, and technical mentorship, the programme targets to nurture 25 deep-tech startups from HEI learners and 10 micro-enterprises from ITI learners in Year 1, with linkages to accelerator networks and capital. Over 2,000 hours of Dell employee mentoring will connect learners across all five corridors with industry professionals for career guidance, AI awareness, and interview preparation.
Where most skilling programmes measure completions, uDaan measures livelihoods by tracking employment and retention at 3, 6, 12, and 24 months post-placement. For learners who pursue alternatives to direct employment, structured apprenticeship pathways through NATS and NAPS government portals ensure every learner has a clear route to economic opportunity.
In the last decade, Dell Technologies has strengthened India’s school innovation ecosystem enabling early digital literacy, problem-solving, and experiential learning. That work has successfully delivered foundational & vocational skills to K12 learners, touching over 50Mn beneficiaries over the years. Collaboration with Atal Innovation Mission (AIM) and NITI Aayog for the Student Entrepreneurship Programme 2.0 (SEP 2.0) aimed at young innovators of Atal Tinkering Labs (ATLs) has been widely recognised as one of the most impactful initiatives to foster grassroots innovation. uDaan now evolves Dell’s community impact work to build upon the strong school ecosystem and narrow its focus to address India’s shifting workforce needs. In addition to uDaan, Dell continues to support broader community access to digital skills through its global Solar Community Hubs program. Since FY23, Dell’s Solar Community Hubs have reached 2.67 million beneficiaries across 18 districts and 14 states, delivering AI-enabled learning tools, skilling modules, and employability pathways to under-resourced communities across India. In June 2026, Dell expanded this initiative with five new hubs across 50 additional institutions, bringing the global footprint to 63 hubs across 12 countries.
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