The Mahatma Gandhi National Fellowship (MGNF) programme, launched by the Indian Institute of Management Bangalore (IIM-B), with support from the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, will welcome the first batch of 75 students, in an orientation ceremony at IIM-B on March 8, 2020. The first cohort comprises 44 per cent women candidates.
The speakers at the orientation ceremony include Dr Mahendra Nath Pandey, Minister of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE); Juthika Patankar, Additional Secretary, MSDE; and TM Vijay Bhaskar, Chief Secretary, Government of Karnataka.
Jayasudha Thiagarajan, Chief Operating Officer, SANKALP Cell, National Instructional Media Institute (NIMI), will inform the Fellows about MGNF IT portal in a special session at the event.
IIM Bangalore launched the MGNF in collaboration with MSDE and State Skill Development Missions (SSDMs). The institute has undertaken this in support of the launch of Skills Acquisition and Knowledge Awareness for Livelihood Promotion (SANKALP) project.
Promote rural employment
MGNF, a two-year academic programme, is an opportunity for individuals to contribute to enhancing skill development and promote rural employment at the district level. It aims to strengthen the district-level skill ecosystem for decentralised skill development governance.
The inaugural cohort of MGNF was selected through a process comprising written tests, personal interview and case analysis. The fellows were shortlisted from various disciplines such as social sciences, business administration, law and engineering. These fellows will be placed in 75 districts across the States of Gujarat, Karnataka, Meghalaya, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh.