Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis unveiled report of the first ever AI-powered skill census in India, in the Cabinet Meeting at Mantralaya in Mumbai. The report was presented in the form of a coffee table book.
 |
Saksham Skill Census Impact Book launched by the Cabinet of Maharashtra
An initiative by the Office of the District Collector, Mumbai Suburban, and the District Skill Development, Employment and Entrepreneurship Guidance Centre, Mumbai Suburban, Government of Maharashtra, the Saksham Skill Census was conducted in the H-West ward of the Mumbai Suburban District, as a pilot.
The census has equipped underserved and previously invisible populations with livelihood pathways for their growth. 6,891 women homemakers were identified to be ready to earn income for the first time ever. 36% of the youth of the ward were identified to be financially constrained and hence missing from a proper career pathway. Persons with disability, youth with perception of discrimination from employers, and various demographics hidden from their true potential were uniquely identified.
“Through the intelligence from this census, we have placed 100 women with a US based organization partnered with us, generating foundational data intelligence. Models from OpenAI, Claude, Gemini, Physical Intelligence, are expected to get significantly enhanced if they use this intelligence. New foreign income generated by women for the first time, while doing a dignified job that builds AI and shape their future, this is one of the impacts of this census,” said Hardik Somani of Sapio Analytics, the execution partner of the census.
This census has put Mumbai Suburban on the global academic map, as it became a case study at Northwestern University, and is currently being studied by prestigious global institutions and knowledge partners. It used AI to extract hidden and untapped truths of the ward and its residents, while using the intelligence to generate the district’s own AI model for matchmaking and decision making.
“Census has traditionally been episodic, but this census is continuous. It is based on the proprietary concept of citizens in the loop, involving residents of Mumbai to continuously share insights, which can be used to build AI models that can recommend contextualized impact policies for them,” said Ashwin Srivastava of Sapio Analytics, responsible for intelligence generation from the census.
The census was conducted under the leadership of Shri Saurabh Katiyar, IAS, District Collector, Mumbai Suburban, with the guidance of Shri Ashish Shelar, Guardian Minister, Mumbai Suburban. Mr Katiyar is a 2016 batch IAS officer, and an IIT Kanpur alumnus who has previously been awarded for his works in Amravati district. For the census, he envisioned use of AI and latest technologies in creating real ground impact through frameworks integrating all stakeholders. Field verification and performance management platform ARC was used for the door-to-door enumeration.
The model is expected to be replicated across all districts of Maharashtra, covering the state through hyperlocal territories. Mumbai Suburban district will see continued impact on the livelihood on all its residents through the census.
