Bengal knocks at World Bank doors for skills education

Bengal govt is also in talks with ADB for an aid of about Rs 2,200 cr

Mamata Banerjee-led West Bengal government is now knocking on the doors of World Bank for aid in skills education.

According to a top World Bank official, the  state has approached the Bank to create a roadmap for skill development in the state, along with financial aid.

“The department of technical education in West Bengal has formally approached us. We will produce a roadmap to them by December. The quantum of financial aid will be decided only after that,” the official added. The areas that the World Bank would be focussing for skill development include textiles, jewellery and pharma.

Meanwhile, National Skill Development Corporation, a public private partnership of the union finance ministry, is already doing a skills gap study for West Bengal. For this, it has commissioned global consulting company KPMG. The study would asses requirement of skills at industrial clusters and rural livelihood trades in various districts.

Under the Centre government’s Vocational Training Implementation Project, the World Bank has already given an aid of $280 million. “The Centre government is setting up industrial training institutes and polytechnic colleges through this,” the official said.

On the other hand, the West Bengal government was also reportedly in talks with the Asian Development Bank (ADB) for an aid of about Rs 2200 crore, in search of cheaper funding options.