Rural Self Employment Training Institute (RSETI) at Itanagar

ITANAGAR, Dec 24: As if not to rest on its laurels of establishing the National Institutes of Technology (NIT), the State government has set the ball rolling for establishing yet another institute of prominence – the Rural Self Employment Training Institute (RSETI) at Itanagar.

Sources today revealed that the State government has confirmed the allotment of land for setting up an RSETI in the State capital that would cater to the training and capacity building needs of local unemployed youths. The confirmation about land allotment was officially conveyed by Itanagar deputy commissioner Padmini Singla to NABARD General Manager Dr Benugopal Mukhopadhyay, who has been instrumental in facilitating the project. The proposed RSETI will be set up by Arunachal Pradesh Rural Bank (APRB), which would be first of its kind by a rural bank in the North-east. The Union Ministry of Rural Development has sanctioned Rs 1 crore to APRB for setting up the institute.

RSETIs are a programme of Ministry of Rural Development for training rural youths and below poverty line persons for self-employment. The RSETIs are replication of the successes of Rural Development and Self Employment Training Institute (RUDSETI) set up by Dharmasthala Munanatheswara Educational Trust, Syndicate Bank and Canara Bank in 1982 in Dharmasthala, Karnataka. These are bank-led institutions, which are managed and run by public sector and private banks with active co-operation of State governments. The main objectives set for RSETIs are demand driven training, focus on rural and BPL youths, assured credit linkage with banks and financial literacy and credit worthiness of the individuals. The area of training to be provided to a particular youth would be decided after assessment of the aptitude of the candidate. The institute would also provide for ensuring at least a two-year follow-up to ensure sustainability of micro enterprises undertaken by the youths.

The Regional Office of NABARD had earlier approached various Commercial Banks and other agencies for setting up the Institute, which was accepted by APRB and it initiated the process.  The NABARD office facilitated the project by taking up the issue at various levels of Ministry of Rural Development, National Institute of Rural Development (NIRD), Hyderabad and the State government.

“The setting up of RSETI will usher in a new era of self-employment with bank finance under various government-sponsored employment schemes,” observed Dr Mukhopadhyay. THE SENTINEL