Himalayan Times (1962)

March 25, 1962

Himalayan Times

Fire

TRAINING OF CRAFTSMEN IN A DEVELOPING ECONOMY

By K. L. JOSH I

It wns during the
Second Plan period that
the, scheme of training
oraflsmen as reorganised
with the advice of the
National Council for Train*
ing in Vacational trades,
established in l»f(i. Cer-
tain institutions were es-
tablished during the course
of the Second War to
train craftsmen to meet
the needs of defence ac-
tivities. Following the
War, they were used as
ex servic emeu training cm
tres. When the post war
rehabilitation work was
completed, the institutes
continued as training cen-
tres to prepare craftsmen
and operatives fur indus-
try and to provide train-
ing for displaced perrons
following the partition of
the eountry. In/ 1944,
an Advisory Committee
on Technic*.I Training was
ooniititutec) by the Govern-
ment of India to review
the work of war-time tech-
nical training soheme and
to recommend measures
for adopting it to meet
peace-time requirements.
This Committee expressed
a view that (he best way
of ensuring a regular sup-
ply of skilled craftsmen
to industry was through
a comprehensive and sys-
tematic cour.te of appren-
ticeship but they felt that

the workshop in India
was not usually a very
(rood sohool for obtaining
knowledge of first-rate
workshop practice and
therefore, reeemmendcd
that apprenticeship in
industry should follow the
course of training in spe-
cially designed centres.
Among the recommenda-
tions of this' Committee
was an idea that the
duration of training should
be of 3) years of which
2 years should be spent
in a training centre and
the balance as sn appren-
tice in a factory Secondly
the qualification for ad-
missiou should be upto a
standard two years below
matriculation or its equi-
valent. This soheme pre-
pared in 1944 could not
be implemented on acoount
of the social and political
changes that fallowed and
in October, 1948 Govern-
ment of India proposed
that the scheme be modi-
fied so as to provide the
training on the same lines
as for exservicemrn to
adult civilians instead of
younger persona. In 1952,
the Government of India
appointed the Shiva Baa
Committee on training snrJ
employment aervioes or-
ganisation of the Ministry
of Labour. They recom-
mended that the training

faoilitiet provided in the
centres run by the Direc-
torate General of Reset-
tlement and the D.G.R.E.
soheme being also trans-
ferred to State Govern-
ments They also stated
that it should be the
responsibility of the Cen-
tral Government to i lay
•lawn the policy of train*
ing craftsmen, to promote
the ehannel of training
facilities with due regard
to all the needs and to
coordinate the overall
naming programme
throughout the enuntry.

The real impetus to
organise training for orafw-
men was given by the
National Council for Train-
ing in Vocational Trades
since established in . 196b'
as. a result of the recom-
mendation of Shiva Rao
Committee. The Council
has representatives from
toe Centra) Government,
the State Governments,
labour, employers and
other interests State
Councils were also esta-
blished in esch of the
States to implement the
policy laid down by the
Central Council. The
Directorate General of
Resettlement and Employ-
ment, now known ait
Directorate General of
Employment and Train-
ing, wag made responsible
fwr ttie implementation of
the policy of the National
Council and is n- w
concerned with the train-
ing of craftsmen to meet