'State to train around 6 lakh youth to foster skill development'

Kolkata: In a bid to foster skill development and create employment opportunities for students, the Bengal government has set a target to train around 6 lakh youth in the current financial year, said Purnendu Basu, Minister for Technical Education, Training & Skill Development in the state.

He was a speaking at a programme organised by the Bengal Chamber of Commerce and Industries. The minister also urged private players and industries to take more constructive role in providing training among the youth.

"Around 6 lakh students will be provided training under 'Utkarsh Bangla' scheme in 2018-19, while more than 73,000 candidates will also be brought under Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Grameen Kaushalya Yojana (DDU-GKY). Around 3,000 students from the costal districts of East Midnapore and South 24-Parganas will be imparted training under Sagarmala programme," Basu said.

Utkarsh Bangla was started by the Bengal government with an aim of providing vocational training to school dropouts. The state government is committed towards a large-scale skill development for its youth population to improve the scope of gainful employment and entrepreneurial opportunities under the West Bengal Skill Development Mission.

Bengal had launched the "Utkarsh Bangla", a flagship scheme on February 16, 2016 under the aegis of the PBSSD (PaschimBanga Society for Skill Development) for placement linked short-term skill trainings across the State of West Bengal.

According to the minister, the intake capacity for polytechnique courses has gone up to 38,045, while in case of ITI the intake capacity of students for the academic year 2018-19 will remain at 71,379 in the state.

The number of pass outs of vocational training among the students at Higher Secondary level and 1,27,000 candidates at Class VIII level.

It may be mentioned here that the Bengal government has already started advanced vocational training at school level to create more job opportunities in the State. Around 2,700 higher secondary schools have been selected for the vocational courses. The main purpose of the scheme is to make these youth employable through various skill development programmes. According to sources, every year more than 8,00,000 students enroll for various courses in colleges.

The Bengal Government is keen to associate with various institutions and the chambers to impart skill development training.