New Delhi, Jan 9 : In a surprising move that has enough ingredients for the public to flag the decision, the National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) -- a public-private partnership (PPP) enterprise working under the Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship -- has partnered with Axis My India, the pollster company owned by Pradeep Gupta, to address key gaps in skill development initiatives.

While the goal of this joint partnership is to facilitate and enhance the participation of beneficiaries in various parts of the country, particularly in underserved regions, the decision to involve Axis My India has sparked widespread skepticism and heated debate.

The crux of the controversy lies in the fact that Axis My India has failed spectacularly in providing the actual outcome in its exit polls. The most notable failure was its disastrous prediction for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

The exit poll firm's projection that the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance would win over 400 seats, which would be the achievement of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's "Abki Baar 400 Paar" mission, was off by a considerable margin. It was a full-blown miscalculation as well.

The reality of the BJP's performance was a stark contrast, with the party falling short of a majority, ultimately securing only 240 seats. The NDA got only 293, which was not even close to the company's projected 361-400 seats.

This major blunder was followed by a similarly "faulty and miscalculated" projection in the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly elections of 2024, where Axis My India's predictions of a hung assembly and a strong showing by the Congress-National Conference (NC) combine proved abjectly incorrect.

The firm also predicted a Congress win in Haryana with 53-65 seats, a prediction that was equally far from reality. Despite the company's shocking, patchy track record, the NSDC's decision to rely on Axis My India for a project centered around "data-driven gaps" in skill development raises serious questions.

The project, which includes surveys to gather crucial data on the state of skill development programmes, beneficiary participation, and industry needs, is vital for future policy evaluations.

However, after a series of high-profile failures in its exit polling and data accuracy, one must wonder: Does the NSDC truly trust the firm's "surveying skills and data authentication"?

Experts warn that there is a significant risk of Axis My India repeating its past mistakes by providing the government with inaccurate and unreliable data. Given the firm's track record of flawed exit polls, the question remains: will it fulfill the purpose for which the government has partnered with it?

Did the NSDC overlook these critical shortcomings when entering into this collaboration?

Pradeep Gupta's emotional breakdown on live television following the dismal failure of Axis My India's 2024 exit polls did little to restore confidence in the firm's credibility.

The opposition parties have already slammed the firm's poor performance, especially when its flawed predictions not only misled the public but also caused a significant market crash, wiping off nearly $400 billion in market value.

Now, with NSDC having signed an MoU with Axis My India, analysts and observers are questioning the wisdom of handing over such a critical task to a firm with a patchy past of 'faulty data gathering'.

The choice to partner with Axis My India for such an important initiative is definitely perplexing. With so much at stake, can this partnership truly be trusted to deliver results? The suspicion surrounding this collaboration and partnership is palpable.

/IANS