How The "Swiss Dual System" is Changing Education in India The company is programming new skills to improve education standards in India
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Pondering over the question why big economies like Switzerland, Germany and Austria are so sound, Dr Rajendra Kumar Joshi stumbled upon the fact that skilled working force of all these countries is over 92 per cent. The system of apprenticeship education prevailing in these three countries is different from the rest of the world and is popularly called the "Swiss Dual System".
With the aim to introduce the same in India, Dr Joshi formed the "Rajendra and Ursula Joshi Foundation' (JCF) in 2006 in Wilen, Switzerland. It was his way of giving back to the society. After an unsuccessful attempt to convince the industry and the government to support the system, he decided to set up a state-of-the-art institute in Jaipur to showcase the benefits of the dual system of education.
Initially starting with their first project of poly-mechanic training called the "Bhartiya Skill Development Campus' they later created "Bhartiya Skill Development University' with an investment of over Rs 150 crore. Dr Joshi in addition to this institute has also laid the foundation of RS IndiaRUJ & SRM Mechanics, for manufacturing of precision parts, surgical instruments, etc., in collaboration with Swiss company SRM Technologies AG. RUJ & SRM Mechanics is incorporated with the core object of manufacturing and assembling of high precision parts, metal anodizing, painting and heat treatment, surgical items etc.
With an investment over Rs 300 cores, this state-of-the-art Swiss precision and assembly unit has high-quality advanced types of machinery which are imported from Austria, Switzerland, Italy, Germany, Singapore, China, and Japan. With highly advanced machinery, RS India plant promises 5650 MT per annum production and generates employment for 250 workers.
The company intends to export a major portion of its production and to explore the domestic market to utilize its full production capacity. Born in September 1934, in Jhunjhunu district of Rajasthan, Dr Joshi completed his pharmacy degree from BITS Pilani and later moved to Switzerland for his PhD and joined as Research Associate and Professor. Dr Joshi has been living in Switzerland since 1969 and was a founding partner of Fumapharm AG Switzerland, a pharmaceutical company which he sold in 2006 to Biogen Idec. He married Ursula Joshi in 1989, a pharmacist from ETH, Zurich who was running her own pharmacy. Throughout their lives, they have been working towards bridging the skilling gap in India.