24 firms on board, government-run industrial training institutes set for a makeover

Mumbai : The perception that only those who cannot afford engineering education due to low marks or financial constraint enroll in industrial training institutes (ITIs) is all set to change. Aiming to improve and modernize ITIs across the state, the department of skill development and entrepreneurship has signed memoranda of understanding (MoUs) with original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and automobile manufacturing companies.

Officials claim that the department has been very selective and is signing MoUs only with top companies that can completely transform these ITIs.

According to the Directorate of Vocational Education & Training (DVET) figures, student enrollment at Maharashtra’s ITIs has increased by over 7 per cent this year. The rise in demand seems to be driven by the ‘Make in India’ campaign, which has brought several Indian and foreign investors to set their foot in Maharashtra.

The Devendra Fadnavis-led government has through its skill development progammes decided to improve and upgrade these ITIs that have been awaiting transformation for long. With OEMs and automobile manufacturing companies tying up with the government’s skill development programmes, all government-run ITIs in Maharashtra are set for a grand makeover soon.

Companies like BOSCH, Volkswagen, Bharat Forge and Tata Motors will install latest machinery in these ITIs to train students who will then be directly hired by these companies.

After signing a total of 24 MoUs in various sectors, the department has set a target of training minimum 2.5 lakh to 3 lakh youths every year, officials claim. Tata Motors is the latest firm to come on board. The department signed an MoU with it last week for upgrade of ITIs through modern machinery and infrastructure apart from providing training and employment.

Principal Secretary, Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, Deepak Kapoor said, “This will help in imparting better practical skills making the students industry-ready. With the modernisation of these ITIs, the government hopes to better the placement statistics too.”

This year, around 1.19 lakh students sought admission to various vocational courses, as compared to 1.08 lakh students in 2015-16 and 1.06 lakh students in 2014-15.

However, according to the officials, the state of ITIs remains the same. They claim the ambitious plan to modernize them will not only help over thousands of students to get the best education from experts and on modern and latest machinery, but also bridge the gap between urban and rural institutes, skill imparted and industry need.

Kapoor said, “While Bharat Forge will be training students of ITI in Khed, BOSCH is working with 20 small ITIs across the state. Volkswagen is training students of ITI Pimpri-Chinchwad and Tata Motors has signed a MoU for ITI Arvi in Wardha. These are top notch private companies. Meanwhile, we are in talks with Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) located in Ozhar at Nashik for a tie-up with ITIs in Nashik district. HAL is a major public sector company. We are involving a judicious mix of both public and private companies.”

According to Kapoor, 22 MoUs have already been implemented and there is no burden on the state finances. “We are convincing these companies to use their CSR funds to upgrade machinery and lab equipment at these ITIs, which is a crying need,” added Kapoor.

The Firms On Board : UNDP, Tata Trusts, JSW, Volkswagen, Kohinoor Technical Institute, Customer, ICICI Skill Academy, Ola, Uber, Namaste Ji, Skill Smart, Gem and Jewellery Skill Council of India, Tech Mahendra Foundation, NASSCOM, RASCI (retail), Electronics Sector Skills Council, Aspire Technology, Jawed Habib, Bharat Forge, Bosch, Lok Mangal, Mahesh Tutorials and Tata Motors.

Note: News shared for public awareness with reference from the information provided at online news portals.