ICICI Academy for Skills inaugurates its new centre in Gorakhpur

March 04, 2019

• Hon’ble Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh Shri Yogi Adityanath inaugurates the centre
• ICICI Foundation will reach a milestone of providing free vocational training to 5 lakh individuals including 2.5 lakh women by FY20 since inception across the country

Shri Yogi Adityanath, Hon’ble Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh inaugurating the Gorakhpur centre of ICICI Academy for Skills in the presence of Mr. Anup Bagchi, Executive Director, ICICI Bank.	Shri Yogi Adityanath, Hon’ble Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh and Mr. Anup Bagchi, Executive Director, ICICI Bank with the students of ICICI Academy for Skills, Gorakhpur.

Shri Yogi Adityanath, Hon’ble Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh inaugurating the Gorakhpur centre of ICICI Academy for Skills in the presence of Mr. Anup Bagchi, Executive Director, ICICI Bank.
Shri Yogi Adityanath, Hon’ble Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh and Mr. Anup Bagchi, Executive Director, ICICI Bank with the students of ICICI Academy for Skills, Gorakhpur.

Gorakhpur: ICICI Academy for Skills (ICICI Academy), an arm of ICICI Foundation for Inclusive Growth (ICICI Foundation), inaugurated a new centre in Gorakhpur today to offer free skill training to the youth from economically weaker sections to help them earn a sustainable livelihood. Hon’ble Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh Shri Yogi Adityanath inaugurated the centre. This is the second centre of ICICI Academy in the state, after Lucknow, and 26th in the country.

ICICI Academy will run the centre under a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model with the Department of Training and Employment, Government of Uttar Pradesh. The centre will provide free vocational training in two courses namely ‘Electrical and Home Appliances Repair’ and ‘Selling Skills’. It will initially train 320 students a year. The curricula consist of industry relevant vocational training as well as life skills such as etiquette and grooming, communication, basic English and financial literacy. The course duration will be for 12 weeks. Youth from the economically weaker sections who are between 18 and 30 years of age and have completed education of at least class VIII are eligible for the ‘Electrical and Home Appliances Repair’ course. For ‘Selling Skills’, the candidate should have minimum education of class X.

Speaking at the inauguration, Mr. Anup Bagchi, Executive Director, ICICI Bank and Member of the Governing Council, ICICI Foundation for Inclusive Growth said, “We, at ICICI Foundation, believe that that the best way to contribute to our nation’s growth is by enabling people to participate in its economic activities. We identified skill development as a key tool in achieving this goal. Bearing this in mind, ICICI Foundation started the ICICI Academy in October 2013 to offer free skill training to the less privileged youth of the county and give them an access to job markets.

I am delighted to announce the partnership with the Department of Training and Employment, Government of Uttar Pradesh today. We strongly believe that the skills gained through the courses will make the youth financially independent.

The centre in Gorakhpur is the 26th centre of ICICI Academy in India and second in this state. I am pleased to say that the ICICI Academies have so far trained over 1.14 lakh youth in the country including 46,000 women. It has achieved 100% placement for all its eligible trained youth. The ICICI Foundation also offers skill training through ICICI Rural Self Employment Training Institutes (RSETIs) and other rural initiatives. Since its inception, ICICI Foundation has trained over 3.87 lakh people across country through all its initiatives. Our target is to achieve a milestone of training 5 lakh individuals cumulatively by FY20, of which 2.5 lakh will be women.”

Key highlights of ICICI Academy in Gorakhpur:

• The centre will offer courses in two disciplines: ‘Electrical and Home Appliances Repair’ and ‘Selling Skills’
• The curricula consist of 12 weeks free industry relevant vocational training courses, and life skills such as etiquette and grooming, communication, basic English, and financial literacy
• ICICI Academy will also provide free uniforms, meal and all relevant course material to trainees
• Students from the economically weaker sections in the age group of 18 to 30 years and have passed at least standard VIII are eligible for the Electrical and Home Appliances Repair course. The candidate should have completed education of at least class X to enrol for the Selling Skills course.
• The centre has tied up with Schneider Electric India as ‘Knowledge Partner’ to create the course content and set up practical training labs for the ‘Electrical and Home Appliances Repair’ course. The curricula and training for the Selling Skills course is developed in-house
• Successful trainees shall be provided with certificates recognised by NSDC and employment opportunities through our network of national level employers

ICICI Foundation has already undertaken significant work in Uttar Pradesh through the ICICI Academy and other initiatives. The ICICI Academy centre in Lucknow was established in May 2015. The centre, which is dedicated to women students, offers a 12 weeks course in ‘Office Administration’. Since its inception, this centre has trained over 3,000 women.

ICICI Foundation, through its rural programme, provides vocational training in locally relevant skills to rural communities in the state and helps beneficiaries find employment, so that they can earn a sustainable livelihood without the need to leave their ecosystem. It has undertaken skill training initiatives in 23 villages across 14 districts in the state. These districts include Gorakhpur, Lucknow, Varanasi, Pratapgarh, Moradabad, Raebareli, Bijnour, Amroha, Aligarh, Barabanki, Kanpur, Amethi, Hardoi and Meerut. Through these initiatives ICICI Foundation has offered training in courses like ‘Mushroom Cultivation’, ‘Bee Keeping’, Pearl Farming’, ‘Dairy & Vermicompost’ ‘Dress designing’, Soft Toys making’, ‘Candle Making’ and ‘Rural Electrical and Home Appliances’ in the state. The trainees are also facilitated with credit and market linkages by ICICI Foundation.

Key highlights of ICICI Foundation:

About ICICI Foundation for Inclusive Growth (ICICI Foundation): It was founded by the ICICI Group in early 2008, with a view to carry forward and build upon ICICI Group's legacy of promoting inclusive growth. ICICI Foundation seeks to promote inclusive growth in India by contributing to the key enablers required for widespread participation in economic opportunities in the country. Through focused initiatives in the identified areas including skill development, sustainable livelihood and financial inclusion, ICICI Foundation is working towards building capabilities and developing innovative models that can be replicated and scaled up in future. It operates through ICICI Academy for Skills, ICICI RSETIs and the rural initiatives.

About ICICI Academy for Skills: ICICI Academy for Skills has 26 centres across the country offering free courses in 12 disciplines. The disciplines are: Selling Skills, Office Administration, Electrical & Home Appliance Repair, Refrigeration & Air Conditioning Repair, Central Air Conditioning, Pumps & Motor Repair, Paint Application Techniques, Tractor Mechanic, Two & Three Wheeler Service Technician, Retail Sales, Assistant Beauty Therapist and Home Health Aide. All the students are also trained in specific life skills such as etiquette & grooming, communication, basic English and financial literacy which helps them adapt to an organised work environment. In addition to training, ICICI Academy provides uniforms, meal and all relevant course material to the trainees. ICICI Academy has tied up with 10 ‘Knowledge Partners’ and over 1,300 ‘Industry Partners’.

ICICI Academy has trained over 1.14 lakh youth including 46,000 women since inception and aims to take the number to 1.5 lakh by FY20.

About ICICI Rural initiatives: In 2016, the ICICI Foundation for Inclusive Growth started a programme for enabling sustainable livelihood through skill development at villages. This initiative aims at taking a holistic approach towards the development of rural India. The programme offers vocational training to the villagers based on the local needs and helps establish market linkages for them to earn a sustainable livelihood. It aims at improving the income levels of villagers through earnings from new skills or through process improvements in their existing occupations. Training is imparted in over 50 locally relevant skills. The programme also includes a module on Entrepreneurship Development which is an integral part of the curricula. Through this project, ICICI Foundation has trained more than 1.91 lakh villagers in over 1,200 villages across 29 states. Out of this 63% are women. The availability of a sustainable livelihood at these villages now discourages individuals from migrating to urban locations in search of jobs.

About ICICI Rural Self Employment Training Institutes (RSETIs): ICICI Foundation also undertakes skill development activities through the RSETIs in Udaipur and Jodhpur districts of Rajasthan. The RSETIs operate two residential centres in these districts along with 16 non-residential centres across various blocks within these districts to provide training to semi-urban and rural underprivileged. The centres impart skill training in over 30 diversified trades based on the requirements of the local economy. Since inception, ICICI RSETIs have trained over 81,000 people of which 54% are women.

Overall Impact: Through the above initiatives, ICICI Foundation has completed the training of nearly 3.87 lakh people. ICICI Foundation aims at reaching the milestone of providing training to 5 lakh people by FY20 including 2.5 lakh women.

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