30.06.22 Daily [Assam] APSC Current Affairs

Assam government recently decided to upgrade its 34 state polytechnics and 43 Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) into Centres of Excellence (CoEs). This will help in imparting the advanced skills to students and build a support system to make the state a hub for technology and industrial Growth.

Polytechnics and ITIs in other states are following the trend, to offer diploma courses that will help them find a job in Industry 4.0.

The up-gradation will bring upscaling of technical competencies, says Hanif Noorani, additional chief secretary at Skill, EMPLOYMENT and Entrepreneurship Department of Assam Skill development Mission (ASDM).

For skill development among students at a large scale, polytechnics, and ITIs play a crucial role as more than 90% of Learning happens through practical training. Mohanty says, Training in a specialized skill is the fulcrum of vocational Education and acquisition of such skills requires industrial exposure offered through industrial labs run at polytechnics and ITIs. We need to leave aside outdated technologies and stay updated with industry trends and align training to students through industry collaborations

approves $250 mn loan for road safety

The World Bank has approved a $250 million loan to support the Government of India’s road safety programme for seven States under which a single accident reporting number will be set up to better manage post-crash events.

The India State Support Program for Road Safety, financed by the World Bank, will be implemented in Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Odisha, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal. The $250 million variable spread loan from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) has a maturity of 18 years including a grace period of 5.5 years.

The project will also establish a national harmonised crash Database system in order to analyse accidents and use that to construct better and safer roads.

It will also fund Network expansion of basic and advanced life support ambulances and training of first responder caregivers to road crash victims on the spot.

The project will also provide incentives to the States to leverage private funding through Public Private PARTNERSHIP (PPP) concessions and pilot initiatives.

According to a World Bank study, road crashes are estimated to cost the Indian economy between 5% to 7% of GDP a year. Official government data show that each year road accidents in India kill about 1,50,000 people and injure another 4,50,000. More than half of the victims are pedestrians, cyclists, or motorcyclists and almost 84% of all fatalities are among road users between the working ages of 18-60 years.

India successfully conducts VL-SRSAM missile test off the coast of Odisha