Google, Nasscom launch beginners’ course on cloud computing, data analytics

Google has opened registrations for the first batch of a course that seeks to help engineering graduates and early stage professionals learn the basics of cloud computing, big data and analytics. Called the Google Cloud Computing Foundations with Kubernetes, the course will be offered for free for eligible individuals, and is organized in association with FutureSkills Prime — an initiative by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (Meity), and industry body Nasscom’s Digital Skilling Initiative.

The program will be offered to students at higher education institutes, and graduates in the early stage of their careers, to learn the basic steps and foundations of cloud computing and data analytics. Registrations for the course are now open, and after completion of the five-part course, participants will also be offered hands-on skill training, through the Google Cloud Skills Boost program, to practice their learnings.

Kirti Seth, chief executive of Nasscom, said that while cloud technologies have become increasingly important for business growth, one challenge in India at the moment is the “shortage of digital skills”.

Anil Bhansali, vice-president of engineering and head of India Development Center at Google Cloud, concurred, adding that cloud and data analytics skills are key since companies today “need to migrate their critical workloads to the cloud and modernize their data infrastructure.”

On July 20, an industry report published by Nasscom on the adoption of cloud technologies in the country stated that the migration of companies towards cloud technologies can contribute $380 billion to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of India within the next four years. The report further added that adoption of cloud platforms have grown at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 44% between 2016 and 2021 — a pace that could grow further thanks to more companies adopting technologies in their operations.

This, in turn, could add up to 1.4 crore jobs in the country, which courses such as Google’s new initiative adding to the working base of such professionals in the country.

To be sure, this is not the only initiative that has offered cloud-related upskilling initiatives in the country. On June 9, Amazon Internet Services, which markets the company’s cloud platform, Amazon Web Services (AWS) in India, announced a collaboration with the Ministry of Education to add cloud computing and machine learning skills under the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE).

Last month, on August 8, multinational US-based IT services firm Accenture also announced a partnership with AWS’ ‘re/Invent’ initiative to offer cloud skills to early-stage working professionals in India.