ICICI Academy’s centre in Gorakhpur will boost youth employability

The new centre is the second for ICICI Academy in the state and the 26^th in India

According to the India Skill Report 2018, only 47% of those coming out of higher educational institutions are employable. Skilling challenges occur due to a certain disconnect between training institutions and industry.

Playing a part in filling such crucial gaps is ICICI Academy for Skills, an arm of ICICI Foundation for Inclusive Growth, which opened a new training centre for underprivileged youth in Gorakhpur inaugurated by Shri Yogi Adityanath, Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh.

Said Mr. Anup Bagchi, Executive Director, ICICI Bank and Member of the Governing Council, ICICI Foundation for Inclusive Growth, “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.”

The centre will provide free vocational training in ‘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.

Said Mr. Saurabh Singh, President, ICICI Foundation for Inclusive Growth, “The rate of migration to other cities is higher in Gorakhpur as it is not strongly equipped with industries. We strongly believe that the skills gained through the courses will make the youth financially independent. We believe that the Gorakhpur centre will help bridge the gap between employability and availability that exists in the district, by not only training the youth in key skills, but also helping them attain employment.”

ICICI Academy will also provide free uniforms, meal and all relevant course material to trainees 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.

Said Mr. Singh, “Prior to opening this centre, ICICI Foundation had already undertaken significant work in Uttar Pradesh. ICICI Academy had set up a centre in Lucknow in May 2015 for women students. We believe strongly in women empowerment and gender inclusion. Since its inception, that centre has trained over 3,000 women.”

ICICI Academy 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.

The centre in Gorakhpur is the 26th centre of ICICI Academy in India and second in this state, after Lucknow. ICICI Academies have so far trained over 1.14 lakh youth in the country including 46,000 women with a 100% placement rate. Said Mr. Singh, “Our target is to achieve a milestone of training 5 lakh individuals, of which 2.5 lakh will be women, across the country by FY’20.”

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