Karnataka govt seeks higher industry apprenticeship quota from Centre
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Bengaluru (PTI): The Karnataka government on Friday urged the Centre to raise the apprenticeship intake limit for industries, which was recently reduced by the Central Apprentices Council.
Skill Development, Entrepreneurship and Medical Education Minister Sharan Prakash Patil said that increasing the ceiling would benefit both industries and aspiring youth by creating more employment and training opportunities.
Speaking at Toyota Kirloskar Motor’s (TKM) Technical Intern Training Program (TITP) at its Bidadi plant, about 40 km from Bengaluru, Patil urged Sonal Mishra, Additional Secretary, Department of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, who was present at the event, to consider revising the current rule.
According to a statement from the minister’s office, industries are currently allowed to engage apprentices up to only 15 per cent of their total workforce. Increasing this limit, it said, would enable industries to contribute more effectively to skill development while expanding opportunities for youth.
Responding positively, Mishra assured that Karnataka’s proposal would soon be placed before the Central Apprentices Council for consideration.
On the occasion, Patil flagged off 100 Toyota Kaushalya apprentices trained under the company’s Global Skill-Up Training (GST) programme to Japan, describing it as a “rural-to-global opportunity” for Karnataka’s youth.
The selected apprentices—drawn from economically disadvantaged families across rural Karnataka—underwent three years of advanced training at TKM’s Bidadi facility, the statement said.
“These 100 apprentices will now undergo on-the-job training at Toyota’s Aichi manufacturing plant in Japan for 10 months, following a one-month classroom programme. The initiative not only sharpens their technical expertise but also helps them embrace global values and professionalism,” said B Padmanabha and G Shankara, Executive Vice-Presidents, Toyota Kirloskar Motor.
The GST programme, aligned with the Indo-Japan Technical Intern Training Program (TITP), aims to promote holistic development by combining technical skills, cultural understanding, and personal growth, the statement added.
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BJP to fight Assam polls on twin planks of development, secure state
Guwahati (PTI): In a bid to win the Assam Assembly elections for the third time in a row, Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday advised the state BJP brass to fight on twin planks: development and a secure state.
Shah, who wound up a two-day visit to Assam, held a nearly two-hour-long meeting with senior leaders of the BJP state unit at the party headquarters here, with a focus on discussing strategy for the state elections, expected in March-April.
Briefing reporters after the closed-door meeting, BJP Assam president Dilip Saikia said, "Development and a secure Assam will be our twin electoral planks."
He also said that Shah, known for his expertise in electoral politics, has offered valuable suggestions, and based on it, an action plan to retain power in the state will be formulated soon.
“Discussions were held in detail on our organisational and political calendars. Shah ji offered some very valuable suggestions, and we will implement those at the earliest…We will share more details on the action plan soon,” Saikia said.
He further said that the Union minister exhorted the state party leadership to ensure that not only do they secure a ‘massive landslide victory’ but also bag more seats than in the previous election.
The BJP currently leads a coalition government in Assam with the Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) and United People's Party Liberal (UPPL), while the Bodoland People's Front (BPF) has also extended support.
In the 126-member Assembly, the BJP now has 64 legislators, while its allies AGP, UPPL and BPF have nine, seven and three memnbers, respectively. In the opposition camp, the Congress’ strength is 26, while AIUDF has 15 members and CPI(M) one. There is an Independent legislator also, belonging to Raijor Dal.
Saikia said that the party will continue to contest the state polls in coalition with its NDA allies, which was also favoured by Shah.
Dismissing reports of chinks in the ruling coalition, the Lok Sabha MP said, “As far as the NDA is concerned, we are united in Assam. There could be discussions about some issues on individual party forums.”
The saffron party has maintained that its alliance with the regional parties will continue, and formalities like seat-sharing arrangements are being worked out.
Shah, who was on his second visit to the state within a month, attended two other events in Dibrugarh and Dheamji earlier in the day. He left for West Bengal after the meeting at the Guwahati state party headquarters.
