Chikkaballapur (Kar): A Central government programme aimed at turning out around 50 crore skilled workforce in various trades was launched on Wednesday on the 150th birth anniversary of late engineer and statesman Visvesvaraya.
The National Training Facility for Skills for All is the brainchild of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and envisages a massive outlay of Rs 60,000 crore to impart skills training to 50 crore persons by 2020.
Union Law Minister Moily, who launched the programme, at Muddenahalli, Visvesvaraya`s birthplace near here, said under this project there would be training centres which would roll out master trainers who would then impart skill training to youths to make them self-employed.
"The centres will initially train one lakh master trainers and one million in about six years," he said.
Moily sought the private sector`s collaboration to implement the project and realise the availability of about 40 crore skilled personnel needed by the country.
The minister, who represents Chikkaballapur Lok Sabha constituency, described Visvesvaraya as a great innovative thinker, who not only ignited ideas, but also transformed them into action.
"Rural Shores is setting up 500 BPOs across the country to provide employment to one lakh youth in the next five years," he said.
Karnataka Governor H R Bhardwaj, who inaugurated the 150th birth anniversary celebrations of Visvesraya, stressed on the need for skills development to modernise Karnataka.
Soon after the function, some ABVP activists staged a protest before the Governor, demanding action on former Mysore University Vice Chancellor Sashidhar Prasad, against whom there are charges of irregularities in recruitment and also an enquiry into alleged irregularities at Women`s University at Bijapur.
When the activists were prevented by police from presenting a memorandum to the Governor they then raised slogans, following which there was a scuffle with police and they were arrested.
Some employees of State Bank of Mysore also staged a silent protest, opposing its merger with SBI. State Bank of Mysore was founded by Visvesvaraya.
PTI
