The automotive sector contributes significantly to India’s manufacturing output and employment (Bhandari, Pratap and Sahu 2022). Among those employed, most are skilled individuals, having undergone formal or non-formal vocational/technical education and training, according to the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS). Despite this, skill shortages and skill gaps abound, as found through stakeholder consultations for NCAER’s National Skill Gap Study for High Growth Sectors (Bhandari et al. 2025). There are in-demand automotive jobs for which people are difficult to find, across geographies (resulting in overall, as well as spatial skill shortages); and if people are available, they lack the necessary skillsets (resulting in skill gaps) (Green 2013).