New Delhi,  The Union Ministry of Skill Development has been imparting various kinds of training to the youth of the northeast region of the country. This training has been designed as per the requirement of the region.

In a similar effort, the Indian Institute of Entrepreneurship (IIE), Guwahati, has been imparting training, research and consultancy activities to small and micro enterprises (SMEs). Nearly 2.5 lakh people have been trained till now through more than 6,700 programmes conducted by the IIE.

According to Dharmendra Pradhan, the Union Minister of Skill Development, the Central government is giving priority to vocational and skill-based education to create employable and competitive human resources. At present, more than 13 lakh students are receiving vocational training in more than 10,859 vocational schools across the country.

According to the Union Ministry of Skill Development, hundreds of new courses related to skill development have been approved in more than 1,200 higher educational institutions.

As many as 22 Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) have been upgraded in north-eastern states by introducing three new trades per ITI with 100 per cent funding by the central government. Under this initiative, the basic infrastructure shortage in 28 ITIs is being taken care of by constructing new hostels and supplementing old and obsolete equipment.

These courses are related to mainly solar technology, bamboo industries, smart agriculture, smart cities, antique toys, agro-based commercial products, tourism-related training, training in relation to ancient architecture, temples, and many other courses.

Simultaneously, 34 new ITIs are being set up in all eight north-eastern states with the help of 90 per cent and 10 per cent funding by the Central and state government respectively. The total cost of this scheme is Rs 420.24 crore.

The government has already released as much as Rs 385.97 crore for the eight north-eastern states of Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Mizoram, Manipur, Meghalaya, Tripura and Sikkim.

A regional workshop was also organized at Gangtok, Sikkim, to sensitize the State Skill Development Missions (SSDMS) and District Skill Committees (DSCs) for effective implementation of Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana 3.0.

All the eight north-eastern states participated in this workshop.

Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana 3.0 aims to provide training to eight lakh youths at a cost of Rs 948.90 crore during 2020-21.

The Union Ministry of Skill Development said, 66 polytechnic institutes are being set up in all north-eastern states.

Of these, 14 polytechnic centres have been set up in Arunachal Pradesh, 21 in Assam, 8 in Manipur, four in Meghalaya, six in Mizoram, eight in Nagaland, two in Sikkim and three in Tripura. Similarly, 83 ITI centres have been set up in all north-eastern states. Of these, 35 centres are in Assam which is the maximum across north-east India.

Short-term training centres have also been set up in the north-eastern states. A total of 391 such centres have been set up here. Similarly, 190 special project centres have also been established across the north-east.

Under the Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana, students don't have to pay fees at all. The courses are available for three months, six months and even one year. After completing the course, a certificate is issued through a digital locker which is valid across the country. The Central government also chips in to provide jobs to the trained youths through employment fairs.