Odisha signs MoUs with 9 agencies to impart skill training

Bhubaneswar: In a bid to create skilled manpower, Odisha government signed MoUs with nine different agencies and organisations having expertise in training youths in different skill development.
     
"We target to impart vocational training to 1.7 lakh young boys and girls this year in order to make them self sufficient", Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik said attending the MoU signing ceremony here.
      
Stating Odisha needed to train at least one million youths during the 12th Plan period, Patnaik asked the trainers to target the youths in Maoist-hit districts. The objective of imparting training to tribal youths was to discourage them from joining Maoist outfits.
     
The training would be imparted in textiles/apparel, manufacturing, construction, driving, hospitality, health and as paramedics, security guards, IT/ITES, retail/sales, banking and insurance sectors, said Usha Padhee, director State Employment Mission.
     
Giving details about the objective of the Mission, Padhee said the programme aimed at enabling youths to  become employed through market linked vocational training and enterprise based training.

Odisha to convert local employment exchanges to career centres

Bhubaneswar: To meet the target of training one million youths in various employable skills during the 12th five year plan, Odisha government has decided to convert the district employment exchanges as career guidance centers.
     
"All the district level employment exchanges will be converted as the offices of the employment mission and will operate as career guidance centres for unemployed youths," said Chief Secreatry B K Patnaik after attending a conference on Skill Odisha Summit.
     
On the basis of screening and assessments done at these centers, eligible youths would be given skill training in different sectors, the chief secretary said adding that the state government targets at least one million persons to be given skill training as against the union governments target of 2.78 million.
    
The potential sectors on which the state government has identified for imparting training are construction, apparel, driving, manufacturing, hospitality and the service industry. 
    
According to the strategy paper 'Market Linked Skilled Development Training Programme for Unemployed Youth' released the state government has set tentative targets to train ten lakh youths in different sectors.
    
While construction and textile sectors target to train 2 lakh each youths, 1.5 lakh of unemployed persons would be trained in driving and manufacturing sectors. 
    
Similarly, the projected figure for manufacturing, health, security guards, hospitality, IT/ITes (Information technology/IT enabled services) and retail is fifty thousand each.
    
For telecom, banking and other miscellaneous sectors about 50,000 youths would be trained in the 12th five-year plan, the paper said.
    
Dillip Chenoy of National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) said over the next 15 years, the total work force demand for skilled jobs in Odisha was expected to grow from 76 lakhs in 2011 to 135 lakhs in 2026. 

AIIMS, Bhubaneswar academic session to begin this September

BHUBANESWAR: Despite the slow pace of construction work, the first academic session of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Bhubaneswar is all set to begin from September this year while its hospital would be ready next year, union health minister Ghulam Nabi Azad said today. 

"Work is moving at a slow pace, but we have decided to start the medical college of AIIMS here this year. Classes for the MBBS course will begin in September, 2012," Azad told reporters here. 

Similarly, the hospital would be completed next year so that the students who join the MBBS course at the new AIIMS centre would be able to utilise the facility, Azad said after visiting the site and reviewing constructon work for AIIMS. 

The director for the upcoming prestigious institute has already been selected and selection of faculties had also been completed, he said. 

"Now all work and preparations (are) for starting the classes this year and the hospital by 2013 with full pace. People are working day and night to complete the work as per our plan," Azad said. 

AIIMS is coming up on 100 acres of land at Sijua on the outskirts of the city. The state government had approved Rs 18 lakh for putting up an 11 KV line at the AIIMS project site while an additional Rs 9 lakh was been approved for beautification of the campus. 

Odisha to get new medical college, two ITIs

Bhubaneswar: Assuring allotment of 50 per cent of electricity to Odisha from the two proposed mega power projects in the state, Union Power Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde announced establishment of a medical college in Sundergarh district.

"The state government had been asking for establishment of a hospital in Sundergarh district. But the National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) would set up a medical college with 400 bed capacity there," he told reporters after meeting Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik here.

Noting that tribals of Sundergarh district should avail quality health services, he said capacity of the proposed medical college could go up in coming days. "Now the work for the medical college will begin," he said.

Two Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs), one each at Angul and Sundergarh would be established for imparting vocational training to local youths. "As a power hub in coming up in the state, there is requirement of a large number of skilled manpower here," he said.

The union power minister, however, informed chief minister Patnaik that it would not be possible on part of the Centre to allocate additional 700 MW of electricity from Ultra Mega Power Project at Bedabahal. The state was presently entitled to get 1300 MW of power from the UMPP at Talcher.  

"Since the Centre has signed power purchase agreement with other states, it will not be possible to allocate additional 700 MW for Odisha," he said, adding that the state would receive 2,000 MW power each from the two proposed UMPPs.

Describing his discussion with the chief minister as "very good," Shinde said that the dispute over the price fixation for the proposed Super Thermal Power Station at Gajamara in Dhenkanal district had been solved.

"Both of us had agreed that the issue will now be solved at the regulatory commission," he said.

Noting that Rs 60,000 crore would be invested in the power sector in coming days, Sindhe said Odisha would soon emerge as a power hub. 

Naveen demands a Central Agricultural University in KBK region

Bhubneswar: Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik asked Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to facilitate the  establishment of a central agricultural university in the backward area of the state.

“The ideal location for such a university will be any of the KBK (Kalahandi-Bolangir-Koraput) districts”, Patnaik said in a letter to the Prime Minister.

“I believe that an imporant component of extending the Green Revolution to the eastern region is to establish one or more central agricultural university in the region, especially in areas strategic to agriculture and possibly in the vicinity of backward districts”, he said.

Pointing out that Odisha has nearly 64 lakh hectares of cultivable land, Patnaik said “our state can certainly play a vital role in enhancing agricultural production in the country, which will go a long way in providing food security to the nation.”

The union agriculture ministry has already declared 2012 as 'year of horticulture' and Odisha is intensifying horticultural activities particularly in KBK districts to create more opportunities for tribal people, Patnaik said.

17 MBBS doctors debarred from appearing for PG Entrance Exam

Bhubaneswar: At least 17 MBBS doctors in Odisha, including six in government service, were debarred from appearing for the medical PG (Post-Graduate) Entrance Examination for three years on charge of adopting malpractice.

The doctors were caught by a squad while allegedly adopting unfair practice in the examination conducted by state health and family welfare department in January, official sources said here.

Six of the 17 doctors were appearing for the entrance examination as in-service candidates while the rest were doing so directly.

Departmental proceedings were initiated against six government doctors besides debarring them for appearing for the PG Entrance Examination for three years commencing 2013.

Similarly, other doctors were debarred from appearing the examination for next three years, the sources said adding their answer sheets would also not be evaluated.