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      Maruti looking to adopt 40 ITIs to create skilled workforce

      CarTrade Editorial Team

      CarTrade Editorial Team

      India's largest car maker, Maruti Suzuki India Limited is considering adopting another 40 state-run technical institutes to create a bespoke labour pool for its Rs. 18,000 crore expansion plans in Gujarat. According to an official, the company is already associated with 10 Industrial Training Institutes (ITI) from where it has hired people in the count of hundreds. On the condition of anonymity, he further added, “A pool is being created. Yes, it will help (the firm’s growth). We can utilise our exposure (of managing 10 ITIs).”

      The total of 50 ITIs, mostly located in northern India, will ensure a constant supply of trained manpower to its dealers and vendors, such as Sona Koyo, Amtek Auto Limited and Rico Auto Limited, besides the company itself. A spokesman for Maruti confirmed, “There will be a lot of courses under these ITIs.” He added, “However, people who will be trained for automobile work will be absorbed by Maruti or its vendors or dealers.”

      A spokesman from Sona Koyo Steering System Limited said, “If you hire from these ITIs, they are normally better than any other diploma holders.” Adding further, “That’s because apart from the training they get at the institute level, they also undergo extensive in-company training at respective plants before being hired.”

      While adopting an institute, the company has to enhance physical infrastructure in the campus, provide tools and machinery for training and modify course content to meet industry requirements. Moreover, training the faculty to update their knowledge base is also part of adopting a technical institute.

      According to Sharda Prasad, Director General, Directorate General of Employment and Training, Labour Ministry, private firms adopting ITIs creates a win-win situation. He quoted, “The adoption of government ITIs help the cause of modernisation and from the company perspective, it helps them to get a customised workforce.”

      Prasad also feels that the corporate houses adopting the technical institutes has helped in plethora of ways. He expressed, “ITIs are getting better infrastructure, contemporary curricula in sync with the industry demand.” Adding further, he said that the institutes also get the opportunity to enhance their own placement record. ITIs promoted by Taj Group, Hindustan Unilever Limited, Videocon Industries Limited, India Cements Limited and Punj Lloyd Limited now boast of placement record of astonishing 85 per cent, according to Prasad.

      Even though a specific count is hard to determine, generally placements from regular training institutes are lower than this. The industry lobbies that have helped facilitate the adoption feel that ITIs have now improved by great measure. On condition of anonymity, a labour activist said that the company can get the opportunity to retrain its personnel by rendering support to an ITI and also insulate themselves from labour strikes.

      Last year, Maruti was crippled due to a strike at its Manesar plant that stopped production operations. The company saw its market share falling 7% to 38% at the end of FY 2011 due to the strike, according to Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturer (SIAM). The spokesperson of the company said that the initiative to adopt government organised technical institutes is not concerned about labour relations but is looked upon as a corporate social move.

      Chairman and Chief Executive, Tecnova India Private Limited, a consulting firm which monitors the labour sector, Abhey Yograj abides by this and expressed that the company can use the efficient, job-ready manpower pool, created by this move to map its own growth plans.

      Head of the education wing, Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry, Shobha Mishra said, “The best part is now these ITIs and industry have a better connection. They understand each other’s need to a large extent.” Commenting further, “The in-company training (of students), contemporary curricula, and training of the faculty by the industry have helped the improvement.”

      Maruti Suzuki