M’luru women’s ITI to go green under pilot project

Mangaluru: The Government Women’s Industrial Training Institute in Mangaluru, is one among the three ITIs in the country, being developed under a pilot project as ‘Green ITI’, by non-profit organisation Quest Alliance. The work on the Green ITI started earlier this month, and will be the first ITI institution in the country, to go green. Apart from Mangaluru, the NGO has selected two other institutions for pilot projects, which are, Government ITI Halol, Gujarat, and the Government ITI Srikona, Silchar, in Assam. Under the pilot project, the NGO will work with the selected institutions, to co-create Green ITIs.
The greening of the ITIs will be undertaken at three levels—infrastructural, cognitive, and learner preparedness for green careers. At the infrastructural level, the campuses of these ITIs will be made environment-friendly, with the end-objective of making them carbon-neutral. The NGO will conduct a green audit of infrastructure, and a personalised plan will be created for each of the selected ITIs, based on the audit findings. The green plan envisages rainwater harvesting, solar power, waste management, and sustainable gardening.
Shivakumar S, principal (in-charge), Government Women’s ITI, Mangaluru, said, “Our institute plans to become a green ITI and inspire students to pursue green careers. We also want to build a green mindset among students. We plan to conduct an audit of the institution, and then chalk out plans of how we can make the ITI green. Secondly, at the cognitive level, students will be encouraged to assess challenges within their ITI campuses, and build green solutions to address local issues. The pilot project will work towards developing a green mindset among students, through a host of programmes, such as hackathons, workshops, sensitisation programmes and others.
Students of these ITIs will be prepared for green careers. It is a third aspect of the initiative. Guest lectures and talks will provide the students with insights into trends and challenges in the emerging green sector. The students will also be provided with career guidance, internship opportunities, and placements through industry engagement initiatives.
Aakash Sethi, CEO, Quest Alliance, explaining why the initiative was being rolled out, said that the looming climate crisis, and the trends in the future of work, point towards green careers. “Most of the students at ITIs currently work in traditional industries, but the green industry is an emerging sector. Young people in ITIs will need to not only build skills, but also have a mindset that will enable them to navigate future career pathways, and make meaningful changes in the world,’’ he added.