NSTI Chennai to be upgraded as CoE under PM Sethu scheme

chennai: the national skill training institute (nsti) in chennai will be upgraded as a centre of excellence at a cost of ₹200 crore under the prime minister's scheme for empowerment through technology upgradation (pm sethu), union minister of state for skill development and entrepreneurship jayant chaudhary said on monday.the announcement was made during the minister's interaction with faculty and students of nsti chennai after a review meeting on the institute's functioning.chaudhary said the pm sethu scheme, with an overall outlay of ₹60,000 crore, aims to upgrade 1,000 industrial training institutes (itis) across the country. as part of the initiative, five national skill training institutes — located in chennai, hyderabad, kanpur, ludhiana and bhubaneswar — will be developed as centres of excellence.he said nsti chennai will focus on advanced manufacturing, with singapore as its international partner. under a memorandum of understanding between the governments of india and singapore, nsti students will receive training in cutting-edge technologies to develop globally competitive skills.emphasizing the need to harness the country's youth potential, the minister urged institutions to foster innovation and continuous upskilling among teachers and trainers to keep pace with technological advancements.the meeting was attended by mps roop kumari choudhary and ayodhya rami reddy alla, along with senior officials including hema usman, joint secretary, ministry of skill development and entrepreneurship, and ajay bhagat, regional director (skill development and entrepreneurship), tamil nadu, andaman & nicobar islands and puducherry.later, chaudhary visited the national instructional media institute (nimi) to review its activities. he released a book titled “shawl weaving artisan” and launched “nimi talks - voice of iti”, a multilingual podcast available in english, hindi and tamil featuring iti success stories and job updates.