In Kota, a city best known as India's coaching hub, a young entrepreneur named Yash Soni has built something quite different: a skill-training network that now employs thousands of young people across the country. What began in 2021 as a modest initiative called the Eduvision Computer Literacy Mission has grown from just 50 centres into a network of more than 700 training centres nationwide, giving Kota a new identity beyond coaching, as a hub for skill development as well.
A Pivot Away From IT
Yash Soni founded the Eduvision Computer Literacy Mission in 2021. In the early days, he tried building the venture around the IT sector, but ran into repeated challenges there. Rather than giving up, he changed course entirely, launching skill-development courses in fast-growing fields such as beauty, hotel management and teacher training. Convincing people in a city built around traditional schooling and coaching to embrace skill development instead was never going to be easy, and getting that message across was itself one of the biggest early hurdles. Slowly, though, people began to trust the model, and it grew into something close to a grassroots movement.
The iStart Turning Point
August 2023 turned out to be the biggest inflection point in Yash Soni's journey. That month, he joined iStart, the Rajasthan government's startup promotion programme. The guidance and incubation support he received through the platform multiplied his business's pace of growth several times over. Yash Soni himself credits iStart's backing, along with the hard work of his dedicated team, for the fact that more than 700 centres across India are now affiliated with the mission, training young people in employable skills. The government platform gave him more than funding, it gave direction and access to a wider network.
Closing the Gap Between Training and Jobs
The biggest problem in the market, Yash Soni realised, was that students were getting trained but not necessarily getting hired afterward. To fix that, he built a dedicated affiliation programme and put strict monitoring systems in place across all centres. Students who have already completed training are also enrolled in modified courses aligned with Skill India standards, so that they qualify not just for jobs within India but for international employment and visa facilities as well. Effectively, the model was redesigned to close the gap between finishing a training course and actually finding work, something that had long been the sector's biggest weakness.
Kota Alone Has Trained Over 3,000 Teachers
The scale of Yash Soni's success is visible in Kota district alone, where he has trained more than 3,000 students through teacher-training courses. He credits the entire achievement to the city of Kota itself. His roots, he says, are firmly in Kota, which is why he has put his full effort into connecting the city's young people with employment through this mission.
Next Up, Nationwide Expansion
Yash Soni has no plans to stop here. He is now working to expand the network further and faster, with the goal of helping young people in every corner of the country become self-reliant through skills. A journey that started with just 50 centres has already reached a network of more than 700, and that number is expected to keep growing in the time ahead.
