Govt to give subsidised loans for vocational courses

New Delhi, Jan 31 (PTI) Keen to create a skilled manpower of 34 crore by 2022, the government is likely to set up a fund for extending loans for vocational programmes with a subsidised interest and the announcement could be made in the next Budget. The proposal for setting up the Credit Guarantee Fund was discussed at a recent meeting of the National Skill Development Council chaired by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, sources said. The fund will be used for extending loans for vocational courses with suitable interest subsidy, they said. The Finance Ministry was asked to consider it, sources said, adding the announcement in this regard could be made in the upcoming Budget in March. The move is aimed at encouraging skill development in the country with the government projecting the requirement to be to the tune of 26 crore by 2018 and 34 crore by 2022. "There is a need to provide quality training to around eight crore people in the next five years," the Prime Minister told the meeting. Singh, while expressing concern over the state of skill development, said the goal could not be achieved with a 'business as usual' approach'. "I must say our efforts on skill development side so far have been rather tentative. We cannot let this state of affairs continue," he said. He asked central ministries to scale up the skill develompent programmes substantially and propose ambitious skill initiatives in the 12th Plan. At the meeting, the NSDC was asked to expedite launch of nationwide communication campaign on the importance of skill development and the dignity of skilled work. (MORE) PTI SGI RSN AKK