Nation’s first skill museum opens

Bhubaneswar: Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik Saturday indicated that time has come to inculcate “design thinking” in the minds of the youth to enable them to foresee the technological needs of the future.
Patnaik, who inaugurated the country’s “first skill museum” on the premises of the state-run Industrial Training Institute (ITI) in Cuttack, said the era of mere domain skill acquisition through ITIs is over. “Now, it is time to inculcate design thinking in the minds of the youth to foresee future technological needs as skilled professional,” he said. The museum’s concept will be rolled out in ITIs of other districts for motivation of the youth towards skill development.
Patnaik said the ITIs are the heart of the state’s skill ecosystem, where trainees are not only exposed to domain skills, but also life skills. The museum, established in an area of 2,600 sq ft, houses skill-based equipment, an exhibition area and an auditorium, constructed at an investment of around `73 lakh. The auditorium has several audio-visual presentations on youth who had changed their lives and destiny by acquiring skills. For example: Muni Tiga, a tribal girl from Sambalpur, was grazing cows. But, she has become a loco pilot after undergoing training at an ITI at Bargarh.
The Chief Minister also felicitated 11 students who have been nominated to participate in a skill competition in Russia in 2019. Among others, Odisha skill development authority chairman Subroto Bagchi, Health minister Pratap Jena and MLA Debashish Samantaray were present on the occasion.
The Chief Minister later inaugurated a mammography unit at Acharya Harihar Regional Cancer Centre (AHRCC) here. The unit will help in the detection of breast cancers among women. “The unit will improve healthcare at the cancer hospital and create awareness on the disease,” said AHRCC superintendent Lalatendu Sarangi.