The Team India returns back home with a rich and unforgettable experience from the world of flawless WorldSkills International Competition, Leipzig, Germany 2013 and an exciting WorldSkills Excellence Festival  Made in Germany, which stands for excellence of engineering and design the world over. 

Made up of 21 male and 3 female competitors participating in 23 skills, ranging in age from 17 to 22, Team India was awarded the  excellence award  in Jewelry making, IT Solutions for business, and Graphic Design technology. This years Competition brought together more than 1001 competitors from 53 Member countries/regions, making it the largest ever Competition of its kind.

Over its 60 year history, WorldSkills International (formerly known as the  Skill Olympics ) has come to symbolize the pinnacle of excellence in vocational training. Every two years hundreds of young skilled people, accompanied by their teachers and trainers, gather together from around the world to compete before the public in the skills of their various trades and test themselves against demanding international standards. They represent the best of their peers drawn from regional and national skill competitions held currently in 67 countries/regions.

Arun Raj Balasubramani, who represented India in the Graphic Design category said,  My aim was to deliver the best, and with the guidance of my expert and mentor, Mr. Sathish Narayanan, Academic Director of Reliance AIMS (Animation Infotainment & Media School).  

My work was appreciated by fellow contestants and jury members, that itself is a great achievement for me. We were given 4 days for 4 tasks with a time of 6 hrs duration on each day. Each and every task was unique and a test of creativity. The evaluation was done at the end of every day so as to maintain absolute transparency and clarity when it came to results. Given the country s first representation in the category, I am glad I did not return back home empty handed. With the blessings and best wishes, one could get the Best of the Nation  and the  Medallion for Excellence  in the Graphic Design Technology. There is a lot to learn but I am sure India will win a medal at Sao Paolo, Brazil in 2015 and I will be the part of the team.

It was a special moment for us to participate in an event of such magnitude and this experience will certainly attest to everyone the importance of vocational education as an essential and effective strategy for the social and economic transformation of communities and countries Preparing Arun for WorldSkills Leipzig 2013 required months of training, hard work, and dedication by the team members of Reliance Aims, Pune. We are exceptionally proud of his outstanding performance and look forward to seeing his career flourish. We are also grateful to NSDC and FICCI for involving Reliance Aims as  knowledge partners  and providing support  said Sathish Narayanan. 

We need young people to come forward, excel, and bring talent into the workforce. The trades, technologies and service industries are growing. And we need to keep up with that growth and when it comes to encouraging young talent and providing platform to passionate individuals, Reliance Aims has always come forward and been instrumental ,  said Mr. Ashish Kulkarni, CEO, Reliance Aims.

Mr. Narayanan believes that the experience and results of any competition provide valuable feedback both to the individuals and the systems and enterprises in which they are being trained. For them, World Skill International is a first step towards success. It surely was the recognition for outstanding achievement, and the motivation and knowledge to aspire to higher standards.

Looking forward to more participation and aiming for gold in the forthcoming WSC, which will be held at Sao Paolo, Brazil, Sathish added, The beginning has been made, the gems have to  be searched, cut, polished , given a proper direction and the stage is all ours.