NEW DELHI: An eighth-pass jewellery trainee, a Class XI florist, a farmer’s son trained in refrigeration and young specialists in robotics, cyber security and Industry 4.0 will form India’s unusually diverse challenge at the “Olympics of Skills” in Shanghai this month.India will field 70 competitors across 63 skill categories at WorldSkills 2026, scheduled from September 22 to 27. The contingent spans 16 states and brings together students, apprentices and young professionals trained in traditional trades as well as emerging technologies. The line-up, however, remains heavily male-dominated: only 14 of the 70 competitors are women.Karnataka has the largest representation with 16 contestants, followed by Odisha with 13 and Tamil Nadu with 12. Maharashtra has five competitors, while Bihar, Haryana, Telangana and Gujarat have three each.Among those heading to Shanghai is Md Dilkhush of Bihar, whose father is a farmer. Trained in refrigeration and air conditioning, Dilkhush emerged as the IndiaSkills national champion and will be tested on installation, maintenance, fault diagnosis and energy-efficient cooling systems.Tamil Nadu’s Joy Das, son of a fisherman, studied till Class VIII and trained in jewellery-making before winning gold at the state and national levels. Mizoram’s Lawmnakima, a Class XI student, will compete in floristry, while Gujarat’s Prakash Suthar has followed his carpenter father into joinery.The contingent also reflects how vocational pathways are increasingly cutting across family and educational backgrounds. Anuja Vare of Karnataka, whose parents are doctors, will compete in visual merchandising. She has previously designed an exhibition space at Bharat Tex that was visited by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and won gold at the regional and national skill competitions.Telangana’s Mehrunissa Begum moved from an apprenticeship in logistics and freight forwarding to successive gold medals at the state, regional and national levels. The daughter of a bakery owner and a homemaker, she has spoken of overcoming anxiety and the feeling of being overwhelmed during her competition journey.Smriti Nambiar of Karnataka, a bakery competitor trained at IHM Pusa, was named the institute’s All-Rounder Student and Rising Culinarian for two consecutive years. Odisha’s Krishnanjali Sahoo will represent the country in patisserie and confectionery, while Jhansirani Rout will compete in restaurant service.The team also carries a strong green-skills component. Rajasthan’s Vishnu Prajapat, whose father is an electrician, will compete in renewable energy after gaining hands-on experience in solar installations and exposure to wind turbines. Rushikesh Pithambaram will represent India in water technology.At the technology end of the spectrum, the Indian contingent will compete in autonomous mobile robotics, cloud computing, cyber security, software testing, unmanned aerial systems, optoelectronics and robot systems integration. Mobile-app developer Arjun Vijayabashkar began coding at 12, while Industry 4.0 contestant Suhan Mascarenhas is the son of two employees of Isro’s Master Control Facility in Hassan.
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Maharashtra’s Harsh Pawar, whose father works as a quality supervisor at a cylinder-manufacturing company, will compete in 3D digital game art. Pawar has already won silver at the Global Skills Challenge in Australia. Two-member teams will represent India in areas such as autonomous mobile robotics, mechatronics, landscape gardening, concrete construction and robot systems integration.The 48th edition will open on September 22, with competitions running from September 23 to 26 and the closing ceremony on September 27. Participants will perform industry-standard assignments under the scrutiny of international experts. The event will also host a conference and industry exhibitions on technical education, workforce development and sustainable technologies.India will seek to improve on its WorldSkills Lyon 2024 performance, where it secured four bronze medals and 12 Medallions of Excellence.
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