Impressed with Bengal’s efforts in skill development: Rudy

Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship Rajiv Pratap Rudy on Tuesday said the Centre will work with the state government to set up Industrial Training Institutes (ITI) on the public-private partnership (PPP) model. He lauded the state government for its performance in this field as well.

The minister – who visited the city on Tuesday to attend the 53rd annual general meeting of Indian Paint Association (IPA) at the CII Centre of Excellence for Leadership in Salt Lake – said that Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had taken a constructive role in developing skills among the youth in the state.

“The Chief Minister is very keen on developing skills among the youth. She is very proactive to take necessary steps. We are also appreciating the effort of Bengal government,” Rudy said.

During the meeting, Rudy also said that the Centre will set up ITIs based on the model in Bengal. 

“These are basically National Council of Vocational Training Institutes, where the Director General of Training (DGT) will give the affiliation,” the minister added.

Discussing about the National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC), the minister said: “This is a trust of around Rs 2,000 crore, primarily to build the training institutes. The private player could build the training centre after fulfilling certain conditions in fee model or grant model,” said Rudy.

Additionally, he hinted that the Centre may introduce different websites for skilled persons to launch themselves professionally. “Under the Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY), one crore youth will be given training. Most of the skilled persons are required in the construction sector and then comes retail sector.

Driving, textile, apparel and handicrafts are those sectors where youth generally wish to be employed after getting the skilled training,” Rudy added.

The minister appreciated the role being played by the Indian Paint Association (IPA) and the Paints and Coatings Skill Council (PCSC) towards top-notch skill development. He reiterated his Ministry’s firm resolve to realise Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision to make India the world’s ‘skill capital’.

What touched a chord with the leaders of the IPA at the meeting was the strong case he made for skill development among all strata of society. The union minister also launched the PCSC newsletter and released a promotional video and the first set of training videos capturing its skill development agenda.

PCSC will soon commence its training programmes across the nation through its affiliated training partners. Rudy also visited two skill training centres of Asian Paints Colour Academy and Berger Paint’s iTrain in Kolkata.

During the 2015-16 fiscal year, the overall production of paints in India was estimated to be at 4.25 million metric tonne. An eight per cent growth in the Indian paint industry is expected between 2015 and 2017.