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Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) will now offer four of its certificate courses to family members of weavers who belong to the two western Odisha villages, namely Kantapalli of Sonepur and Sagarpalli of Bargarh district.
The decision was made during the institution's East Zone Directors' Meet. The regional directors of Odisha, Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Chhattisgarh and seven other states attended the two-day meet.
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Dr. Abhilash Nayak, Regional Director, IGNOU Bhubaneswar said that, under the Unnat Bharat Abhiyan started by the central government, the university will provide these courses free of cost.
The aim is to train the weavers about best and latest practices used in the field so that they can enhance their knowledge and skill in weaving clothes and dresses for their business.
Nayak also informed that under this programme, the government offices will connect with weavers through information and communication technology (ICT). Training the weavers to utilize technology is another part of the initiative so that they can enhance their business.
The four courses that the university will offer the weavers’ families are as follows:
- Computer Literacy Programme (CLP)
- NGO Management
- Bachelor Preparatory Programme (BPP)
- Certificate Course on Entrepreneurship
BPP programme will allow aspirants to get admission into bachelor’s degree programme even if they have dropped out of school or college. Those who wish to apply for the BPP programme can clear the entrance examination and join the bachelor's programme.
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Interested family members will have to register at the nearest IGNOU study center in order to benefit from the courses provided by the university. All the four courses offered by the university are six-month certificate courses.
Apart from this, the fees of scheduled caste and scheduled tribe candidates have been exempted by the University for undergraduate programmes. The study material will be translated from English to Odia keeping in mind the better understanding of the language by the native people.
