First community skill park at Chavara

KOLLAM: Kollam is set to get the country’s first ever community skill park, the Kaushal Kendra.

Chief Minister Oommen Chandy will inaugurate the Rs 1.5-crore facility under the Kerala Academy for Skills Excellence (KASE) at Chavara here on Saturday.

“This is an exemplary skill development centre that even the Centre has shown an interest in replicating through the country,” labour minister Shibu Baby John said.

The KASE plans to open Kaushal Kendras in Kozhikode, Palakkad and Kannur in the first phase this year and it will go rural areas of the other districts the next year.

“This is the first such centre in the country instituted specifically to meet the shortcomings of our educated youth and boost their employability at very nominal costs”.

The Centre works in four areas including an assessment and career guidance cell that helps rural youth to realise their career aptitude through the best global assessment tools.

It provides guidelines to choose courses best suited for the candidates taking into consideration their socio-economic and educational background.

The Centre also provides high-end digital library having tie-ups with the World e-Library ensuring access to digitised and authenticated content from across the world.

The Kaushal Kendra in association with the English and Foreign Languages University in Hyderabad facilitates its language lab that will help job aspirants obtain proficiency in English and other foreign languages.

The Kendra also contains a multi-skill room with the video-conference facility that acts as a skill training facility and virtual classroom, depending on industrial needs. candidates will also be trained in various fields with the support of training and industrial partners with a view to ensure placements.