Telangana sets in motion process to establish Skill University

Hyderabad, July  (IANS) The Telangana government on Monday set in motion the process for the establishment of Skill University with Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy holding a meeting with industry bigwigs and top officials.

Revanth Reddy directed the officials to make arrangements on a war footing for the varsity's establishment.

Addressing the meeting held at Engineering Staff College in Gachibowli, he asked the participants to come up with clear proposals for the establishment of the Skill University one or two days before the start of the budget session of the Assembly by month end.

The government will take an appropriate decision within 24 hours after examining the proposals, he said.

The Chief Minister stated that the main objective of setting up the university is to provide advanced knowledge and upgrade the skills of the youth.

Deputy Chief Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka, IT and Industries Minister D. Sridhar Babu and Advisor to the Chief Minister Vem Narender Reddy also attended the meeting.

The Chief Minister proposed the establishment of Skill University within the premises of the Engineering Staff College due to its proximity to IT companies and other industries. He also asked officials to consider the constitution of a Board for the university on the lines of the International School of Business (ISB) and decided to constitute a temporary board.

He suggested the officials come up with a blueprint in advance for the courses to be offered in the university, course curriculum, industrial needs and employment opportunities to the youth.

As per the decisions taken at the meeting, the Industry Department, in coordination with the Education Department, will engage with Industry leaders and come up with a clear action plan for setting up Skill University, envisaged as a Public Private Partnership (PPP) project in a hub and spoke model that is self-sustainable. The hub is to be located in Hyderabad with spokes in every erstwhile district headquarters to cover all parliamentary constituencies eventually.

The industry will play a critical role in demand assessment, curriculum development, skill training as well as offering internships. The government will facilitate the setting up of the university by giving necessary regulatory approvals, and providing land and buildings. A corpus fund will be created with CSR donations from the industry.

The Deputy CM has been asked to look after the financial issues to set up the university and IT and Industry Minister Sridhar Babu will oversee the preparation of curriculum and courses. The two ministers have been asked to formulate the proposals with a fixed deadline and meet once in five days. The officials have been asked to hire a reputed consultancy to prepare all the necessary proposals and project reports for the establishment of the university.

The Chief Minister also announced the Industries Department will be the nodal agency for the university. Special Chief Secretary, IT and Industry Jayesh Ranjan, Principal Secretary, Education B. Venkatesham, CM's Special Secretary Ajith Reddy, Vishnuvardhan Reddy, Dr Reddy's Lab Chairman Satish Reddy, Hari Prasad from Bharat Biotech, CREDAI President Shekhar Reddy and Srini Raju of I Labs were present.