Let me start with an honest admission. When I first read the Apprenticeship Act, 1961, my first thought was: this is a law that belongs to a different era. And then I came across research from Kellogg School of Management asking whether apprentices are an ‘endangered species’ – and suddenly the two clicked together in a way I couldn’t ignore.
Because here’s the thing. India passed this law sixty-four years ago to solve a very specific problem: how do you get industry to train young workers? The answer the law landed on was essentially a deal. The apprentice gives you cheap, obedient labour. You give them skills. Simple exchange. Centuries old. And now, AI is walking into that room and saying – I’ll do the cheap labour part. For free.
The currency that apprentices use to buy knowledge from their masters is vanishing – and the Apprenticeship Act 1961 has no answer for that.
The Act’s Cracks – Before We Even Get to AI
The Apprenticeship Act mandates that establishments...
