NIELIT and Intel India launch Agentic AI skilling programmes for workforce

MUMBAI: India is getting its workforce ready to work with AI agents, with the National Institute of Electronics and Information Technology (NIELIT) and Intel India launching two new Agentic AI skilling programmes.

The programmes were unveiled at a National Leadership Dialogue on “Preparing the Future Workforce for the Agentic AI Era” organised by NIELIT, under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, in collaboration with Intel India in New Delhi.

The event brought together representatives from government, foreign embassies, academia, industry and the skilling ecosystem to discuss how India’s education and workforce systems need to adapt as AI moves beyond generating content towards systems capable of reasoning, planning and carrying out complex tasks under human oversight.

The dialogue focused on emerging skill requirements, industry-aligned curricula, experiential learning, faculty preparedness, AI-enabled learning environments and closer collaboration between government, academia and industry.

The programme was attended by Shashi Shekhar Vempati, chairperson of the Central Board of Film Certification, as chief guest, along with Madan Mohan Tripathi, director general of NIELIT; Sudeep Shrivastava, COO of the IndiaAI Mission and joint secretary at MeitY; and Anshul Sonak, head and global director at Intel, among other senior representatives.

The discussions highlighted that the rise of agentic AI is changing the skills required across industries. Alongside technical capabilities, students, educators and professionals will need stronger adaptability, judgement and the ability to work effectively with increasingly capable AI systems.

Vempati stressed the need for long-term skilling pathways that combine foundational and emerging technology skills with practical exposure, industry case studies and real-world datasets. He also called for sustained collaboration between government, industry, academia and skilling institutions to prepare young people for both current and future employment opportunities.

NIELIT director general Madan Mohan Tripathi said the collaboration would combine NIELIT’s nationwide skilling reach with Intel’s technology expertise and industry perspective, helping bring Agentic AI learning closer to institutions and learners across India.

The government also underlined the importance of developing a strong AI talent pipeline. IndiaAI Mission COO and MeitY joint secretary Sudeep Shrivastava highlighted industry-led training, AI-focused education programmes and digital learning initiatives as key tools for expanding AI capabilities.

He also pointed to the importance of AI Data Labs and industry-academia partnerships in giving students, researchers and professionals practical exposure to emerging AI technologies.

Intel senior director, Asia Pacific and Japan, International Government Affairs, Shweta Khurana said AI is progressing from assistive tools towards agentic systems and, eventually, physical intelligence, making human readiness increasingly important.

Two programmes target different skill levels

The NIELIT-Intel India Agentic AI Skilling Initiative includes two programmes designed to broaden access to practical, industry-aligned AI education.

Agentic AI for Everyone introduces learners to workflow automation, AI agents and multi-agent systems. The programme focuses on productivity, business transformation and intelligent decision-making, with hands-on learning around the design and governance of AI-powered workflows using no-code platforms.

The second programme, Engineering Agentic AI Systems, takes a more technical approach. It covers the design, development and deployment of AI-powered agentic systems, giving learners exposure to both no-code and low-code platforms and code-based frameworks.

The programme covers areas including agent architecture, tool integration, orchestration, memory and deployment, with the aim of helping learners develop scalable and production-ready AI solutions.

The initiative comes as India looks to expand its AI talent base alongside investments in AI infrastructure and digital capabilities. By combining government-backed skilling infrastructure with industry expertise, NIELIT and Intel India are seeking to take practical Agentic AI education to learners and institutions across the country.

The broader objective is to ensure that India’s workforce does not simply adapt to the next wave of AI, but is equipped to build, deploy and work alongside it as the technology becomes more deeply embedded across industries.