Cuttack : The State’s first Skill Museum was inaugurated by Chief Minster Naveen Patnaik on the premises of Government Industrial Training Institute (ITI), here on Saturday. The museum contains various antique items including old equipments, machines, and innovative project designs by students which have been collected since 1906.
Addressing a gathering, Naveen said the era of domain skill acquisition through ITIs is gone. The innovative museum has been created to inspire youths and inculcate innovative thinking in them to foresee technological needs as skilled professionals.
“The Skill Museum at ITI, Cuttack is one of its kind. It would connect ancient and modern skills and also be a link forward to future skills,” Naveen said and added that the museum concept will be rolled out in ITIs of other districts for motivation of youths towards skill.Stating that ITIs are the heart of our skill ecosystem where trainees are not only exposed to the ‘domain skills’ but also ‘life skills’, Naveen said ITI, Cuttack had been producing skilled professionals over the last 60 years.
“My Government has made efforts to forge partnership with international Technical Vocational Educational Training (TVET) players like ITE, Singapore and ITIs have started their transformative journey,” said the Chief Minister.
Our skilled professionals are competitors for medals at World Skilled Competitions and quite a good number of young girls are opting for ‘Skills’ as career which is a positive sign for our mission, he said.
“I am happy that a number of good initiatives have been taken up by Odisha Skill Development Authority (OSDA). Now it is time to inculcate designed thinking in the minds of the youths to foresee future technological needs as skilled professionals. The skill museum which is one of a kind will connect ancient & modern skills. This skill museum concept will be rolled out in ITIs of other districts,” CM Patnaik said during the inauguration ceremony.
OSDA Chairman Subroto Bagchi said a skill museum has come up for the first time in the country in Odisha that too not in any branded college or institutions but an ITI.
“We hope that it will take the institute and skills of the students to a whole new level. At least four such skill museums are likely to come up by the end of this year. We have decided to establish a World Skill Centre in Odisha by 2019,” he said.
The museum, which aims to provide information about skills to students, has been set up in an area of 2600 sq ft. It houses several skill-based equipment and machinery, a world-class exhibition area and an auditorium constructed at a cost of `73 lakh.
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