Ganjam administration identifies land parcels for skill centre

Berhampur: A day after chief minister Mohan Charan Majhi announced establishment of two campuses of the World Skill Center at Berhampur and Sambalpur, the Ganjam administration has taken prompt steps to identify the land for the proposed centre on Saturday.

“Ganjam administration has identified around 20 acres of land each near Parala Maharaja Engineering College, Chandipadar and Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER), Laudigaon, for establishment of proposed World Skill Centre,” said collector (Ganjam) V.Keerthi Vasan.


He said the adminitration would submit details of the identified sites to the govt soon to select one for setting up of the world-class skill development centre. An expert team of the govt is likely to visit the identified site and select one of them after reviewing different aspects.

In his budget address, the chief minister announced establishment of seven campuses of World Skill Centre by 2047 with at least five by 2036. He proposed for the new campus of the WSC at Berhampur and Sambalpur with a total investment of Rs 278 crore. “These campuses will offer advanced, industry-oriented training to prepare youth with globally competitive skills across emerging sectors,” he said, adding each campus would have an annual intake capacity of about 2,000 students from ITIs, polytechnics and other interested youth. The govt has allocated Rs 10 crore under “Odisha Skill Development Project Phase-II” to initiate the process, the chief minister said in his budget speech.

Several academicians have welcomed the govt’s proposal for establishment of WSC in Berhampur. This will boost technical education in southern Odisha, said LN Panda, a retired professor. The aspirants will get the opportunity to take training in the emerging sectors and to compete globally, he said.

Hailing the govt’s decision, MP (Berhampur) Pradeep Kumar Panigrahy urged Ganjam district administration to take all necessary steps, like identification of the land, clearance from different departments and others on a war footing. “Earlier I have given a proposal for establishment of WSC in Berhampur to arrest distress migration,” he said. “We hope able persons from the district will take skill training at the centre and will be self-employed, instead of going to other states in search of work,” said Panigrahy.