The plumbing industry is one of the largest contributors to providing employment opportunities and livelihoods to millions of people without experience throughout India.

With the aim of providing these people with advanced training courses that incorporate technological interventions to match global standards, the We Are Water Foundation, in collaboration with the Indian Plumbing Skills Council (IPSC) that operates under the aegis of The National Skills Development Corporation (NSDC), have organized the first training course for plumbers in Gurugram on 14th and 15th May, 2019.

Around 30-35 candidates, residents of Delhi-NCR, Odisha and Bihar, have received plumbing training from instructors of products certified by Roca, engineers of DDA (Delhi Development Authority). With a special focus on women plumbers, the program will not only help break down stereotypes of society, but will also encourage participants to join the profession, and help them become certified, recognize themselves and earn better livelihoods.

This was the first training batch for the plumbers in Gurugram. The We Are Water Foundation is targeting to do similar batch in eight locations, primarily Tier 1 and Tier 2 cities. The total target is to train 1,600 beneficiaries out of which 700 will be women and from the trained beneficiaries, 65% will be placed to earn entry level jobs. The placement will be taken care by IPSC.

Under this program, independent plumbers and plumbing assistants (including women engaged in this trade) who work in the sector will receive free training for specific jobs according to the National Skill Qualification Framework (NSQF). Furthermore, the plumbers will be assessed and will receive the Skill India (the campaign launched by the Government in 2015 to improve training in different professional activities) and IPSC Certification in recognition of their skills.

At the opening ceremony of the course were present as spokespersons: Mohan Reddy, Governor of SSC Governance, NSDC, Major Gen TK Chadha, COO, IPSC, Mayuri Saikia, Marketing Director, Roca Bathroom Products Pvt. Ltd. and Parveen Khurana, vice president of sales, Roca Bathroom Products Pvt. Ltd.