By our Staff Reporter

GUWAHATI, July 21: Union Panchayat and Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh advocated giving stress on imparting skill development to workers engaged in manual labour jobs and said the private sector firms can play a role in it.

Ramesh was speaking at the inauguration of five-year integrated Master’s Programme in Social Sciences by the Guwahati campus of the Tata Institute of Social Sciences on Saturday.

“The subject of social science has attained a great importance in the country, given its diverse and vibrant society and the Northeast in particular has special need for such an institute,” said the Union Minister, adding, “There are many outstanding students studying social sciences in India and to teach and guide these students, we need excellent faculties.”

According to Ramesh, the Central Government has given stress on the development of the Northeast. “The Union Panchayat and Rural Development Department has given Rs 10,000 crore to the Northeastern States for the development of sanitation and other schemes,” he said.

Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi said the problems afflicting the Northeastern region could also be taken as case studies by the Tata Institute of Social Sciences. “The establishment of Tata Institute of Social Sciences in Assam will benefit the State in particular and the North East in general, and the inauguration of the master’s programme is a historic step,” said Gogoi.

State Education Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma termed the inauguration of the master’s programme as “red letter day”. He also thanked the DoNER Ministry in this regard.

S Ramadorai, chairperson of the governing board of the Tata Institute of Social Sciences; Paban Singh Ghatowar, DoNER Minister; Professor AC Bhgawati, chairperson, advisory committee of the Tata Institute of Social Sciences, and others were present on the occasion.

The Tata Consultancy Service (TCS) Training Centre in Guwahati was inaugurated today by Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi at NEDFi House.

A press release stated that Union Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh and and S Ramadorai, Adviser to the Prime Minister were among those who were present at the inauguration.

About 150 people have joined the TCS learning centre and undergoing their initial learning programme (ILP) since June. The centre will train around 600 fresh TCS joinees annually.

Meanwhile, the Assam Government and Pearson Group announced a joint initiative to provide vocational skills training for young people in schools in Assam.

Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi also launched the first skills delivery centre under the initiative at the Kamrup Academy Higher Secondary School in Guwahati today, which is expected to serve as a platform for the introduction of the National Vocational Education Qualification Framework (NVEQF), an ambitious national programme to integrate skills, training and qualifications in schools.