New Delhi, 16 October (H.S.): An investment of Rs 1,194.92 crore has been approved for upgrading five Industrial Training Institute (ITI) clusters in Maharashtra, Odisha and Jammu and Kashmir under the Prime Minister’s Skilling and Employability Transformation through Upgraded ITIs (PM-SETU) scheme. The decision was taken at the sixth meeting of the scheme’s National Steering Committee (NSC), chaired by Debashree Mukherjee, Secretary of the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship. With these approvals, the total investment sanctioned under PM-SETU has reached Rs 3,687 crore.

Under the scheme, Tata Steel Foundation, BVG India, Belrise Industries, Eagle Infra India and Inderdeep Infra India will participate in modernising the five ITI clusters. The initiative aims to transform industrial training institutes into modern skill-training centres aligned with industry requirements and equipped to prepare trainees for future challenges.

The meeting was attended by Niranjan Kumar Sudhanshu, Additional Secretary in the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship; Mansi Sahay Thakur, Joint Secretary; and other senior ministry officials. Representatives of the Directorate General of Training (DGT), state governments, Union Territories, industry partners and multilateral development banks also participated.

The National Steering Committee approved an investment of Rs 240.50 crore for the Cuttack ITI cluster in Odisha. The cluster will be upgraded in partnership with the Tata Steel Foundation. Government ITI Cuttack will serve as the hub institution, while government ITIs in Choudwar, Paradip, Jajpur and Dhenkanal will function as spoke institutions.

An investment of Rs 241 crore has been approved for the Pune ITI cluster in Maharashtra. The project will be implemented in partnership with BVG India Limited and the BVG Foundation. Government ITI Aundh, Pune, will serve as the hub, with the Aundh Women’s ITI and government ITIs in Pimpri-Chinchwad, Khed (Rajgurunagar) and Mulshi connected to it as spoke institutions.

Similarly, Rs 238.01 crore has been sanctioned for modernising the Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar ITI cluster in Maharashtra in partnership with Belrise Industries Limited. Government ITI Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar will function as the hub, while government ITIs in Paithan, Khultabad, Phulambri and Gangapur will serve as spoke institutions.

For the Jammu ITI cluster, an investment of Rs 240 crore has been approved in partnership with Eagle Infra India Limited. Government ITI Jammu will serve as the hub, with government ITIs in R.S. Pura, Nowshera, Samba and Kathua included as spoke institutions.

An investment of Rs 235.41 crore has also been approved for upgrading the Srinagar ITI cluster in partnership with Inderdeep Infra India Limited. Government ITI Srinagar will serve as the hub, while government ITIs in Ganderbal, Kangan, Budgam and Charar-e-Sharief will be connected as spoke institutions.

Debashree Mukherjee said the National Steering Committee’s approvals represented an important step towards implementing the PM-SETU scheme. They would help strengthen ITIs, improve the quality of training and expand industry participation. She encouraged the clusters to work towards ISO certification and to include at least one WorldSkills-aligned trade or competency area in their approved action plans.

She said the government aimed to provide young people with better skill training and expand their employment opportunities. Describing the progress made in Jammu and Kashmir as encouraging, she said it reflected the commitment to strengthening skill development and expanding opportunities for the region’s youth.

The approved projects include developing modern training infrastructure, introducing new courses aligned with industry requirements, enhancing the capabilities of trainers and strengthening institutional linkages with industry. Particular emphasis will be placed on equipping young people with skills that improve their employability.

The meeting also reviewed progress under the trainers’ training programme, which forms the second component of the PM-SETU scheme. The component aims to build a strong pool of trainers equipped with technical expertise and modern teaching skills.

According to the ministry, 3,744 trainers had been trained under the programme through National Skill Training Institutes (NSTIs) as of October 2026.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar