State govt to set up ITIs in every block

The state government will set up one Industrial Training Institute (ITI) in every block and one polytechnic institute in every sub-division.

This is the first time when such priority has been given to technical education in the state. There are 235 ITIs and 146 polytechnics in Bengal at present. The All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) approved the three-year course offered by polytechnics. In total, there are 341 blocks in the state.

The state government took the decision to set up ITIs in every block as there is a great demand for technical education in the state. Keeping this in mind, the laboratories in the ITIs have been upgraded to meet the need of the hour. Some of the ITIs are being looked after by private agencies. The department of Technical Education has chalked out an elaborate plan to upgrade the syllabus taught at the ITIs, making it more job-friendly.

The state government has set up several skill development centres and is preparing a policy to ensure that those who pass out from the centres get jobs. Attempts have been made so that those who pass out from the ITIs get a chance to do a crash course in the skill development centres to upgrade their skills.

The Centre has on numerous occasions appreciated the steps taken by the state government to develop the skills of the workers. The state government believes that merely getting a certificate from an ITI is not enough; the crash course will help the students upgrade their skills so that they can easily find jobs. The companies want skilled workers and they appreciate candidates with proper training. The Technical Education department has spoken to experts requesting them to come up with suggestions to upgrade the syllabus.