Assam Govt signs MoA with Tata; to invest Rs 2,390 crore for development of polytechnics and ITIs into Centres of Excellence

The Government of Assam and Tata Technologies Ltd, a global engineering and product development digital services firm signed a  Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) to upgrade the Polytechnics and ITIs into Centres of Excellence on Wednesday. It aimed to transform 34 state polytechnics and 43 Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) into futuristic Centres of Excellence (CoEs) entailing an investment of about Rs 2,390 crore.

The ceremonial signing of the memorandum took  place at Janata Bhawan in Guwahati. 

The MoA was signed by BK Chakravarthy, Principal Secretary, Skill, Employment and Entrepreneurship Department and Warren Harris, CEO, & Managing Director, Tata Technologies Limited in presence of Chief Minister Dr. Himanta Biswa Sarma and Skill and Industry Minister Chandra Mohan Patowary and Education Minister Dr. Ranoj Pegu and other senior officials.

Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sharma took to his twitter handle to share the news, he wrote, “Today we've put a huge step towards enhancing employability of our youth & make them ready for Industry 4.0.”

Meanwhile, Tata Technologies stated that it has signed a 10-year Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) with the Assam government for this purpose.

Following their upgrade, these COEs will not only meet the advanced skill needs of students aligned to Assam's key industries, but will also serve as a technology and industrial hub for MSMEs and encourage entrepreneurship.

It added that the total proposed investment in this project would be around Rs 2,390 crore.

Subramanian Ramadorai, Chairman of Tata Technologies, commented on the collaboration, saying that technology is rapidly evolving and that skilled manpower is in short supply.

To keep up with these evolving technology trends and make the lateral shift toward Industry 4.0-powered smart business operations, it's critical to upgrade the country's state polytechnics and ITIs and train the youth in the latest technologies.

"The upgraded COEs will provide a wide range of courses to upskill Assamese youth in various traditional and new age industries, empowering the northeast region of India, which is a key focus for the Tata Group," he added.

"Through this collaboration with the Assam government, we will leverage our product engineering expertise and manufacturing domain knowledge to create future-ready courseware and training platform that allows students at polytechnics and ITIs to develop skill sets and capabilities in line with the requirements of Industry 4.0 technologies and be part of the rapidly transforming ecosystem," said Warren Harris, Managing Director and CEO of Tata Technologies.

"The technology upgradation of polytechnic and ITIs will lead to better employment opportunities for the local youth and transform the state of Assam into a potential investment destination for all those industry players keen on embracing Industry 4.0 and smart technologies for manufacturing," the statement said, quoting Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma.

"We also believe that this initiative will greatly benefit MSMEs who cannot afford high-end technological equipment, which will be made available for use at polytechnics and ITIs," the COE said.

The signing of the pact will also guide youth in traditional Assamese industries such as tea processing, food processing, handicrafts, and textiles to support Assam's industries, it added.