Smart centre in Sivasailam to make youths employable

Another centre will function in Dindigul within three months

Gandhigram Trust is establishing smart centres to impart soft skills to rural youths in order to make them employable.

The first centre started functioning at Sivasailam in Tirunelveli district on Monday and another centre would start functioning in Dindigul within three months, said K. Shiva Kumar, secretary of the trust.

Signing a memorandum of understanding with Redington Foundation in this connection here on Monday, he said that these centres would train youths in communication skills, especially spoken English, automation skills and provide them career counselling. Besides, the trainees would be helped in knowing about the right office, he added.

Several qualified youths did not meet the requirements of industries and were not adequately skilled to position themselves in offices immediately.

This programme would make them fit to join any office and start their work from day one without any hassles, he added.

Already, the trust had been implementing total sanitation programme in five unions. To expedite construction of individual toilets at panchayats, it had a tie-up with Arghyam, a Bangalore-based non-governmental organisation, to offer a revolving fund to beneficiaries for constructing toilets.

The government would offer subsidy only after construction of toilets. Offering interest-free fund would encourage even the poor, who did not have the initial amount, to construct toilets. The beneficiaries would repay the amount after receiving the subsidy. Quick release of subsidy would help them extend the revolving fund to more beneficiaries in the district, he noted.