Pradhan reviews skill development in NE

GUWAHATI, Dec 8: Union Minister for Skill Development & Entrepreneurship and Petroleum & tural Gas Dharmendra Pradhan reviewed skill development and entrepreneurship in North Eastern Region at a city hotel on Friday. A representative of each NE states gave an account of ITIs, their upgrading and central schemes at the review meeting.

Reviewing the state of skilling ecosystem in NE, the Union Minster said that the states of the region should decide sectoral areas for imparting market-relevant skill training to local youths. He asked the tiol Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) to coordite with State and their stakeholders to understand NE’s needs and requirements. “Synergy is the strategy, to produce greater and meaningful effect. Potential areas like handloom, horticulture, agriculture, tourism, bamboo, poultry farming must be harnessed,” he said, and added: “Honesty and hardworking are tural assets of the people of NE and Assam Government must showcase this in the upcoming Global Investors’ Summit to attract investors.”

Further, Pradhan called upon OIL, NHPC and other central PSUs to coordite with the NE states for implementation of the tiol Apprenticeship Promotion Scheme (PS) for providing opportunities for hand-on job experience and training to the youths and suggested setting up of a Trainers’ Institute in Guwahati for North East Region. He also stressed the need of imparting short-term skill courses for students from class 8-12.  State Skill, Employment and Entrepreneurship Minister Chandra Mohan Patowary stated that the State Government aims to skill 1.5 lakh youths every year. He also told that construction of the country’s first-ever ITI for the differently-abled at Dibrugarh is going on and mentioned the plan to launch 200 new skill training centres in the state. He requested the Union Minister to bring the ITIs and polytechnic institutes under one umbrella for better coordition and convergence. Th. Radheshyam Singh, Manipur Skill and Education Minister and others were present at the meeting.