Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw launches Rail Kaushal Vikas Yojana to empower youth

Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw launched Rail Kaushal Vikas Yojana (RKVY), a program under the aegis of Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY), at Rail Bhavan here on Friday.

The scheme aims to empower youth by way of providing entry-level training in industry-relevant skills through Railway training institutes as part of 75 years of Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav.

On this occasion, Suneet Sharma, Chairman and CEO, Railway Board and other senior officials of Railways were also present.

According to a release by the Ministry of Railways, Vaishnaw said, "It is an auspicious day as Vishwakarma Jayanti is being celebrated across the country. I also congratulate Prime Minister Narendra Modi on his birthday. I dedicate Rail Kaushal Vikas Yojana as the gift of Railways to the Prime Minister on his birthday. The vision of skill development is an integral part of the vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and 50 thousand youth will be trained under Rail Kaushal Vikas Yojana."

The aim of this initiative is to impart training skills to the youth in various trades to bring qualitative improvement.

He also emphasized that training in remote areas is to be conducted under Rail Kaushal Vikas Yojana. He stressed that youth should enjoy the training process.

According to the Railway Ministry, the training will be provided to 50,000 candidates over a period of three years. Initially, the training will be provided to 1,000 candidates. The training will be provided in four trades viz. Electrician, Welder, Machinist and Fitter and will comprise of initial basic training of 100 hours.

"Training programs in other trades will be added by zonal railways and production units based on regional demands and needs assessment. Training shall be provided free of cost and participants will be selected from applications received online, following a transparent mechanism on the basis of marks in matriculation," read the release.

"Candidates who are 10th passed and between 18-35 years shall be eligible to apply. Participants in the scheme shall however have no claim to seek employment in Railways on the basis of this training," it said.

The programme curriculum has been developed by Banaras Locomotive Works, the nodal PU for this scheme, which will also standardize assessments and maintain a centralized database of participants.

"The scheme is being launched for 1,000 participants initially and will be over and above the training provided to apprentices under the Apprentice Act 1961. A nodal website is being developed as the single source of information about programs offered, notification inviting application, lists of selected candidates, results of selection, final assessment, study material and other details. Currently, applicants may apply in response to the advertisements issued locally in the initial phase. Submission of online applications shall be opened soon on a centralized website," informed by the Railway Ministry.

According to the ministry, trainees shall be required to undergo a standardized assessment and will be awarded a certificate in the allotted trade by the National Rail and Transportation Institute, upon conclusion of their programme. They will also be provided Toolkits relevant to their trade which would help these trainees utilize their learnings and enhance their capacity for self-employment as well as employability in various industries.

75 Railway training institutes spread across the country have been shortlisted to provide training in aforesaid trades, to cover youth from all over the country. The scheme will not only improve the employability of the youth but also upgrade the skills of self-employed and those who are working with contractors through re-skilling and up-skilling and contribute towards the Skill India Mission.

(ANI)