Technical Educa-tion and Vocational Training Authority (Tevta) is providing apprenticeship training to more than 6000 manpower in 783 operating Industries across the province of the Punjab. It was disclosed by Chairperson Tevta Saeed Ahmad Alvi while addressing the seminar the other day.
President Multan Chamber of Commerce and Industry Shahid Naseem Khokhar, General Manager (HRM) Tevta Asif Wasim, leading entrepreneurs of business community and other attended the seminar. Alvi said that Apprenticeship Ordinance, 1962 envisages promotion/development and regulation of the systematic apprenticeship programmes in the industrial units having employment level of 50 or more persons. It obligates the employers to recruit and train apprentices in different apprentice able trades. This is mandatory and essentially of welfare nature.
The training period of apprentices commonly ranges from six months to three years. Apprenticeship training in the Punjab is being implemented through Regional Directorate of Apprenticeship Training (RDAT) under the administrative control of Tevta at Lahore, Faisalabad, Gujranwala, Sialkot, Rawalpindi, Multan and Bahawalpur. Alvi also said that government of Punjab has established apprentices training centres across the cities with industrial concentration, ie Faisalabad, Ferozewala, Gujranwala, Lahore and Sialkot with the objective to provide institutional training to industrial apprentices.
Chairperson said that apprenticeship is globally recognised mode of training of skilled workforce. It is also considered the best way to cope up the problem of unemployment. It provides opportunity to the industry for flexible, tailor-made training courses designs and produce-desired workforce. "Due to the importance of Apprenticeship Training (AT), most of the countries of the world have brought AT under auspices of statute. We have to do the same, if we want eradication of poverty and economic growth," he said.