VIJAYAWADA: The State government is laying renewed emphasis on enhancing the skills of youth in the capital region as the prospect of large-scale industrialisation brightened in the wake of signing of agreements by the AP Capital Region Development Authority (AP CRDA) for ₹1.41 lakh crore investments during the CII Partnership Summit in Visakhapatnam.
It is estimated that over two lakh jobs will be created by companies that inked the MoUs across 11 sectors.
Keeping the demand for augmentation of skills in view, the CRDA has set up the Amaravati Skill Development Centre in Mangalagiri in association with the A.P. State Skill Development Corporation (APSSDC), which is conducting vocational training programmes for those aged between 18 and 40.
According to official sources, the APSSDC and the CRDA have till date offered training to 483 candidates, of whom 386 have secured jobs in Guntur and Krishna districts.
Applications have been invited for fresh training classes and it is being made clear to the interested candidates that no stipend will be paid and they are not charged any fee either.
A CRDA official told The Hindu that training was being given to youth belonging to all the 27 revenue villages in the capital region and the course duration ranged from 30 days to six months.
“Currently, training is being given in mobile phone and air-conditioner mechanism, car driving, beautician course, automobile repairing, and a few other trades. More courses are likely to be added in due course,” the official said.
Eventually, the APSSDC and the CRDA are going to work with the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) for skill enhancement once the industry body sets up its training centre as part of its plans for Amaravati.
A.P. Chambers of Commerce and Industry Federation general secretary P. Bhaskar Rao said that while the APSSDC-CRDA combine was doing its bit to improve skills, his organisation studied the industry requirements and made some suggestions on bridging the skill gap.
“The government has drawn long-term plans for capacity-building in Amaravati and it is a continuous process as candidates pass out of the courses and new enrolments take place,” he observed.
