E-Paper
U.P. govt to provide vocational training to school girls
Prior to the start of the course, training partner institutions are expected to deliver training materials.
Lucknow: As part of its ongoing endeavour to help girls become self-reliant, the Uttar Pradesh government will provide vocational training to them in the school. Depending on students’ interests, training partners of the Skill Development Mission will offer training in related trades.
The initiative will commence in the upgraded Kasturba Balika Vidyalayas of the state. In this regard, Vijay Kiran Anand, director general of school education, has issued an order directing Kasturba Balika Vidyalayas to ensure the participation of all girl students with this programme.
The order further states that meetings will be held to generate awareness about the value of vocational training at the community level. This will be done with cooperation from the district school inspector, principal and district coordinator of Skill Development Mission, district basic education officer, and district coordinator of girl education.
According to Rajeev Yadav, assistant director of the Skill Development Mission, “A total of 54 Kasturba Balika Vidyalayas have been notified. Training in these schools will soon begin. The registration procedure has begun. Under the programme, the responsibility to teach girls has been given to the training partners affiliated with us.”
As per the order, the introduction of the skill development scheme and its advantages should be discussed to motivate and enroll more girls in the training. Room and furniture should be compulsorily made available for training. Also, a room within the hostel itself should be converted into a training room, if a dedicated room is not there already. One full-time instructor should be given control over the program’s implementation by nominating it as the nodal.
Coordination with the training partner institutions is to be made, and they are to be given complete cooperation without any needless intervention in their work. Prior to the start of the course, training partner institutions are expected to deliver training materials.
The girls should be assigned trades based on their interests during pre-counseling. It should be mandatory to report the attendance of female students undergoing training on the Prerna portal. Additionally, it should be ensured that enrolment in the institution meets the target rate of 100% and that all female students attend training sessions in full. A warning has also been issued along with the directive that the district coordinator for girl education and warden would face harsh disciplinary punishment if a different circumstance is discovered during physical verification or a surprise inspection.
Significantly, the Skill Development Mission runs numerous such programmes across the state to give girls access to vocational education. In view of women’s safety, a safety kit distribution program is also underway. As part of the initiative, special kits are provided to girls by the experts after 10 days of training. As part of a pilot project, vocational training has already begun in the homes of a few women.
