India is entering two workforce races at once: finding enough people to support an expanding automobile manufacturing base and equipping them with the increasingly sophisticated skills needed to build its next generation of vehicles. Sixty-one per cent of auto-component makers surveyed by BCG-ACMA already identify manpower shortages among their biggest disruptions,Pune needs about five times the skilled workers its local training system produces and automakers have reported supplier-related production constraints.Yet demand is set to accelerate further, with an ICCT-IIM Bangalore study estimating the EV transition could support 7.2 million direct manufacturing jobs by 2040 if battery cells are made domestically.That is despite the automobile industry spending an estimated ₹1,000 crore annually on skilling, according to industry estimates. The money is fragmented across internal training, CSR programmes, apprenticeships, government schemes and training embedded in factory investments, while emerging technologies require more expensive capabilities in high-voltage systems, batteries, power electronics, mechatronics, robotics, AI and software.The mismatch is most acute deeper in the supply chain. Large OEMs and Tier-1 suppliers have greater capacity to spend on training, automation and retention. Smaller Tier-2 and Tier-3 companies have less room to absorb rising manpower costs while investing in new skills, yet shortages at a handful of critical suppliers can disrupt an automaker many times their size.A FEW SUPPLIERS CAN STOP THE LINEMahindra & Mahindra’s Rajesh Jejurikar in a recent interaction with businessline said three or four key suppliers were “impacted pretty badly” by labour shortages during April-June, alongside other disruptions. “So, yes, we would have produced more, and we had significant shortages out of three or four key suppliers,” Jejurikar said.Bajaj Auto CFO Dinesh Thapar described labour shortages as “exceptionally pronounced.” Labour availability, material tightness, energy disruptions and logistics together cost Bajaj production opportunities equivalent to roughly 10% of potential quarterly volume, though it didn’t attribute the entire loss to labour.TVS Motor CEO K.N. Radhakrishnan said Tier-1 suppliers were generally managing labour availability but many Tier-2 suppliers faced “serious problems.”BCG-ACMA says smaller companies are more vulnerable to workers moving to larger employers within and outside the industry. Management attrition is 18–20%, with blue-collar churn even higher.FIVE NEEDED FOR EVERY ONE TRAINEDPune illustrates the shortage. Its automotive ecosystem employs about 1.6 lakh people and needs roughly 27,000 new skilled workers annually for growth, vacancies and attrition.ITIs, polytechnics and ASDC centres have about 13,500 auto-relevant seats, but enrolment and graduation rates leave only around 5,000 completing training.Headcount is only half the problem. “The harder problem is finding the right person to fit the role,” BCG-ACMA said. Electronics, software and mechatronics skills are already scarce, while the report warns the skilled-workforce pipeline is slow and “the gap can’t close in a year.”WHY ₹1,000 CRORE ISN’T ENOUGHExisting spending doesn’t necessarily build a common pool of future skills. Corporate training focuses largely on companies’ own workforces, while CSR, apprenticeship and government programmes serve broader vocational requirements.Advanced EV and digital-manufacturing training needs specialised laboratories, equipment, instructors and frequently refreshed curricula that smaller suppliers can struggle to finance individually.