Such an enterprise is very viable from an economic perspective as there is clarity on revenues and a disciplined and professional approach, Gupta said, stressing that he is not a big fan of charity.

Former head of management consultancy McKinsey, Rajat Gupta, on Friday said India’s skill development initiative is a “dismal failure”. Gupta, who was convicted of insider trading in the US in 2012, said there is a need for focusing on sustainable models while developing projects with a social impact and not depend on charity. It can be noted that the government has been laying a lot of focus on skills for the last few years, which started by the creation of a dedicated ministry at the federal level for the same with an eye to ensure millions of youth joining the workforce every year find jobs.

“We have this whole initiative of skills in this country which has been an absolute dismal failure,” he said, speaking at the Tatas-sponsored Mumbai Litfest here. Gupta, who was instrumental in starting the Indian School of Business (ISB), cited the case of one of the management institute’s pupils, who created a skill development institute wherein the students pay after getting a job.

Such an enterprise is very viable from an economic perspective as there is clarity on revenues and a disciplined and professional approach, Gupta said, stressing that he is not a big fan of charity. He said a government’s biggest responsibility is to create a level playing field for businesses, where it has not been successful, and also providing a safety net for individuals.

Gupta also hit out against aspects like indices for happiness like the one adopted by Bhutan, questioning how does one measure the same. He also pitched for reforms in electoral funding if one were to make democracies work truly, stating that in the upcoming presidential race in the US, over USD 2 billion will be spent.