Bangalore Candidates to Represent India at the WorldSkills Competition in Abu Dhabi

Team India gears up to participate at the biggest exhibition for skills, WorldSkills Competition popularly known as “Skill Olympics” in the world, which will be organized in Abu Dhabi from October 14 to 19, 2017.  More than 1200 competitors from 70+ countries will compete across 50 skills at this biennial competition.

Varun Hanumanth Gowda hails from a small town near Bangalore and is one of the brightest candidates. After his bachelor’s degree in Mechatronics, he was fortunate to get a maintenance job in Toyota, a leading automobile company. An agile and friendly worker, Varun is known as a ‘problem solver’ amongst his team members and is recognized for finding unique solutions for technical issues in the line machines. He says that he is ever-ready to learn and challenge himself for the most difficult tasks. This passion encouraged him to participate in the World Skills selection rounds. After winning a gold medal at IndiaSkills 2016, he is now aiming to win a medal at WorldSkills 2017 with his team mate.

Thathimakula Arumugam Anand Kumar is passionate about his studies and is known amongst his peers for his creative thinking. He has always been applauded for his efficient problem-solving skills during his three-year Mechatronics course at the Toyota Institute. After joining as a maintenance member in Toyota, Anand was very passionate to make his mark and kept practicing Kaizen in various areas and gained the ‘Best Kaizen Mind’ title in his department. He participated in Asia Pacific Skill Contest 2015 where he won a Bronze. At the IndiaSkills 2016 his team won a Gold medal. Anand believes in learning and sharing his knowledge with everyone around him. Presently his team is preparing vigorously for the WorldSkills competition.

Marshal Lazar Wilson is a professionally qualified tool and die making engineer from NTTF, a technical training institute in Bangalore. A creative boy from his childhood, he enjoyed drawing, do-it-yourself concepts and was always interested in using different computer softwares to hone his creative skills. After finishing high school, he developed a deeper interest in design and wanted to turn his passion into his career. His degree in Mechanical Engineering Design-CAD from NTTF offered him that special training which gave him direction for his future. Marshal has participated in various boot camps of AUTODESK and his presentation was amongst the top five design concept presentations.

Mohit Dudeja who is 20 year old, holds the position of an Assistant Pastry Chef at India’s first specialised baking school, Lavonne Academy of Baking Science & Pastry Arts. An alumnus of Lavonne, he graduated with a diploma in Patisserie offered by the institute in affiliation with City & Guilds, London in 2016. Following his training, he interned at the Trident Hotel, Mumbai for three months before returning to his alma mater to serve as a team member of pastry chefs. A stellar feat for a professional as young and as talented as Mohit, he has been to Korea to enhance his skills in Sugar Art, for his participation at WorldSkills 2017. Mohit has also competed in various national and international competitions such as JPC, India and WorldSkills UK. He loves practicing yoga and likes participating in marathons.

Kiran Sudhakar is an ITI Electrician from Karkala, Karnataka. He is a 19-year-old technocrat who loves to play cricket and listen to music. His aim has always been to work hard and do whatever it takes to perfect his skill and thus, he participated in the IndiaSkills competition where he succeeded by winning a Gold medal. His next aim is to compete at the international level and bring a gold medal for the country.

Nitish Kumar who is 20-year old, studying Fashion & Apparel Design at the Army Institute of Fashion & Design (AIFD), Bangalore. He is born with a painter's brush in his hand. Adept at using both physical and digital paint, Nitish has a keen eye for detail and a flair for balanced art and design. His nimble fingers and neat execution have earned him the sobriquet of a "Magician". Nitish has designed and executed several murals in various media at his college. He has won an international gold medal, two national gold medals and one bronze in painting during his school days. He has also been a part of the design team that won the national level fashion competition at IIT, Mumbai in 2015 and was fortunate enough to present a portrait of A.P.J. Abdul Kalam to the late President himself. His journey to the World Skills competition, Abu Dhabi has been exciting which motivates him to improvise his skills every day.

National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) has been spearheading India’s participation under WorldSkills since 2011. For the upcoming competition, WorldSkills India has selected a team of 28 competitors, who will compete in 26 skills ranging from car painting, brick laying, hair styling, beauty therapy, proto-type modeling, auto body repair, visual merchandizing, mobile robotics, CNC Turing, welding among others.

Congratulating the candidates representing India at WorldSkills 2017,  Manish Kumar, MD & CEO, NSDC said, “On behalf of NSDC, we would like to congratulate the candidates for being selected as one of the finalists to represent India at the WordSkills competition. Representing India on a global platform is a matter of great pride and honour for all our competitors, many of whom come from very humble background. We are elated to see them develop and utilize their skills with dedication, enthusiasm and passion. We are confident that Bangalore candidates and all others will perform their best at the competition and make India proud.”

“Our competitors are great ambassadors for skills in India and will motivate many in the society to hone a skill and contribute positively towards nation building”, he further added.

NSDC had identified all the competitors through a series of competitions organized at regional and national levels over the past two years. Post which all the candidates have undergone extensive training with Industry partners, which has helped them improve their skills before the competition. Many candidates have also travelled overseas to get trained under the guidance of some of the best trainers and experts available internationally.