Goa has 13 ITIs under DSDE, offering 44 engineering and non-engineering trades under the Craftsmen Training Scheme, mostly affiliated to NCVET and some to the State Council
The State of Goa boasts of various traditional vocations, some of which are going extinct due to non-availability of skilled artisans, and the reluctance of the GenNext to embrace their family professions. It is heart warming that the Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) spread across various cities and villages in Goa are instrumental in offering training courses in various trades, and vocations, with some of these falling under the category of traditional occupations in Goa.
Prime Minister’s Vishwakarma Yojana aims to empower traditional craftsmen, enhance their skills, and provide financial support to improve their productivity and competitiveness and ITIs in Goa, embracing this approach, have included courses and trainings that generate employment opportunities to students who pass out after hands on training of a year or two, depending upon the type of the course.
One of the biggest in Goa
Beginning with one of the biggest and the oldest ITIs in Goa, the Farmagudi Government Industrial Training Institute ‘The Goan’ spoke to the principal (Sr Scale) and assistant director Akshay A Shirwaiker about the tremendous transformation in the system of education as well the ITI. Aiming to support ‘Kaushal Goa and Kushal Goa’ by skilling, re-skilling and up-skilling activities, ITIs work in sync and with the guidance of the Directorate of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship. Adopting innovative methods to create awareness in the public and attract students to the various courses available at this centre, the continuous process of linking skill development with entrepreneurships is on.
50-plus years of excellence
“We are a 50 plus year old institute. Started in 1973, we completed 50 years in 2023. Countless past graduates are well placed in various sectors. Most of our staff are also our past students, who graduated and began teaching. Our location is in an educational hub, with different educational complexes around including Goa Engineering College and IIT Goa, NSTI proposed Hotel Management Institute etc. Our ITI has 19 trades, most of them are core engineering trades and we are well equipped with the machinery and required infrastructure,” informs the principal of Farmagudi ITI, Akshay Shirwaiker.
Industry-ready candidates in the making
Shirwaikerwho is also an assistant director under the Directorate of Skill development & Entrepreneurship, elaborates that these trades and instructors help trainees to skill themselves as per the rising demands in the industry, which required skilled manpower. “We harness the talents in budding aspirant’s cultivate, teach them skills and make our trainees industry ready. We have a professional designed syllabus as per the National Council for Vocational Education and Training (NCVET). We come under the ambit of Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, New Delhi which frames the curriculum for us. In Goa we come under the Directorate of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship which frames State Council for Vocational Training (SCVT). The courses which are affiliated to State Council come under State Directorate. Hence, most of our courses available here are of State and National level.”
There is huge demand for heavy engineering trades from the industrial estates in the vicinity of this ITI. The ITI students go to these industries as apprenticeship, work and learn there and do a very good job, says the principal. Most ITIs run on a base scheme, Craftsman Training Skill (CTS), and we produce graduates who are awarded National Trade Certificate (NTC). Under the same scheme under State Council, we issue them State Trade Certificate (STC). This is a flagship scheme offered by the Central government which is run by all 10 government ITIs and private ITIs in Goa, briefs Shirwaiker.
Flagship schemes
Besides this, at Farmagudi ITI, under another flagship scheme, PM Vishwakarma Yojana, launched by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi, different artisans in Goa are trained in various skills. “We have taken two trades – Darji, Brick Masonary and trained around 450 artisans under these trades within our campus,” briefs Shirwaiker.
Another central scheme, PM Kaushal Vikas Yojana – has short term courses of 300 or 400 hours, designed by NCVET, and many students are being trained under it. Goa government’s CM Kaushalya Path Scheme (CM KPS) launched in April 2023 helps in skilling, re-skilling and up-skilling maximum number of local youth and providing skilled work force to industry as per their demand. “Under CM KPS we go to the industry or panchayat where there is demand, and design the course for them at the directorate level to train them. Our instructors go to them and train. We have these three schemes,” adds the principal.
New initiatives
An innovative manufacturing training centre by Siemens India Ltd has been set up in the premises of ITI Farmagudi providing advanced training in topics like CNC programming, 3D printing etc. “Similarly Daikin Centre of Excellence and Advanced Training Centre at the premises provides training to trainees in our ITI as well as other aspiring candidates in the field of refrigeration and air-conditioning sector. We have partnered with Vedanta SESA Goa to boost women participation in ITI through scholarships. Girls are encouraged to pursue ITI courses in diesel mechanic, fitter, turner, machinist, instrument mechanic, and electrician,” says Shirwaiker.
The ITI has recently initiated the affiliation of dress making trade under the aegis of NCVT. This new age trade was taken for up-gradation under initiatives of the STRIVE scheme which a central government initiated scheme. We also have a well developed solar lab under CSR initiative by Sri Sri Ravishankar’s Art of Living Foundation thereby helping trainees gain expertise in solar technologies.
Besides this, the ITI has dual system of training in mechanic motor vehicle and food and beverage service assistant trade as it has signed a MoU with Tata Group of Hotels and Maruti Suzuki respectively, and we have also proposed new MOU with welding sector like M/s Putzmeister Pvt Ltd for its welder trainees. A new trade, electric vehicle, has been started and looking at the demand of EV car segment it has shown a very encouraging and prosperous future for the aspirants.
“Tata Technology Ltd also has set up its centre of excellence at Farmagudi ITI which will now give access to latest technology training in trades like battery operative electric vehicles, advanced plumbing, internet of things , 3D painting advanced CNC programming and many more to come,” concludes Shirwaiker.
