NT NETWORK
Panaji
Amidst the disturbance to the education system as a whole from the pandemic, the state’s Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) functioned fairly smoothly, according to the government.
Dipak Desai, director, directorate of skill training and entrepreneurship (DSDE) on Thursday, said that ITIs were comparatively less disturbed by the pandemic because their academic year starts in August-September.
“Institutes had completed 70 per cent of the syllabus when the lockdown was imposed in March 2020. The remaining 30 per cent of the syllabus was imparted online. About 80 per cent of our students accessed online classes and for 20 per cent of students who had difficulty with online classes the instructors kept in touch in whatever way they could,” said Desai. He pointed out that ITIs have resumed physical classes since September 21, unlike other educational institutes that are still not sure when to start.
“Our students have started attending classes and without a single positive case of COVID found so far. Only five states have started physical classes for ITIs and Goa is one of them. The institutes are seeing 70-90 per cent attendance,” he said.
The director added that ITIs also successfully conducted online admission for the first time for the new batch of students for 2020.
Few states could conduct online admission. The whole process took us about three months but it was completed smoothly, said Desai.
“The directorate completed the semester and annual examination for ITI students on Wednesday, December 2, 2020. The examinations started in November 23 and were held amid most difficult situation in terms of the prevailing conditions. For the first time the state registered 100 per cent in the external examiner module on the portal,” he said.
Approximately 1721 trainees in the state appeared for phase one of the National Council of Vocational Training (NCVT) exams.
Desai disclosed that amidst the pandemic the directorate signed MOUs with Siemens and the National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) respectively.
The MOU with Siemens was for training of trainers wherein ITI instructors will be trained with up-to-date knowledge on latest developments in the shop floor.
The MOU with NSDC is for health sector courses. It is aimed at meeting the demand for skilled healthcare workers in the state. Candidates who complete the course will be skilled in primary healthcare and employed in hospitals and private clinics.
The courses will be conducted at the Asilo hospital, Mapusa. Under the terms of the MOU, a trainer partner will be appointed by NSDC. The courses are likely to start in January 2021.
