Those pursuing ITI courses after Class VIII will be treated as

Those who have completed education up to Class VIII and are pursuing ITI courses will now be treated as equivalent to Xth standard which will enable them to continue further studies.
A decision in this regard was taken at the first meeting of National Skill Council, attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said.
The move will give the students "vertical mobility".
Similarly, those who have passed Class X examination and are pursuing ITI courses will be treated as equivalent to 12th standard.
He said as skill universities are now being developed, this requires changes to be made in the UGC guidelines as the needs of such specialised universities is different from regular varsity.

Fadnavis also said that those trained under the Skill Development Programme should be given easier access to loans under schemes like Mudra Yojana.