The government has approved investment plans worth Rs 1,194.92 crore to upgrade 25 Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) across Maharashtra, Odisha and Jammu & Kashmir in partnership with five industry players, including Tata Steel Foundation and Belrise Industries, to strengthen vocational training and youth employability.

The approvals were given at the sixth National Steering Committee meeting of the Pradhan Mantri Skilling and Employability Transformation through Upgraded ITIs (PM-SETU) scheme on Friday, according to the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship. With the latest approvals, cumulative investment cleared under the scheme has reached Rs 3,687 crore.

The five approved plans cover ITI clusters in Pune and Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar in Maharashtra, Kataka in Odisha, and Jammu and Srinagar in Jammu & Kashmir. Each cluster comprises one hub ITI and four associated institutes.

Cluster-wise Investment Details

"The approvals given by the National Steering Committee are an important step in implementing PM-SETU. They will help strengthen ITIs, improve training and increase industry participation," said Debashree Mukherjee, Secretary, Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship. Among the approved projects, Pune received Rs 241 crore in partnership with BVG India, while Odisha's Kataka cluster received Rs 240.50 crore in partnership with Tata Steel Foundation. The Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar cluster was approved for Rs 238.01 crore with Belrise Industries, while the Jammu and Srinagar clusters received Rs 240 crore and Rs 235.41 crore, respectively, in partnership with Eagle Infra India and Inderdeep Infra India.

Project Focus and Goals

The projects will focus on upgrading infrastructure, introducing industry-aligned courses, improving trainer capacity and strengthening industry participation to bridge gaps between vocational training and employers' skill requirements. Mukherjee also urged clusters to pursue ISO certification and include at least one WorldSkills-aligned trade or competency area in their implementation plans.

Training of Trainers Programme

The committee also reviewed the Training of Trainers programme, under which 3,744 trainers had been trained through National Skill Training Institutes as of October 2026. (ANI)