Army Wives Welfare Association has traditionally been running skill training programmes for spouses and wards of soldiers. Now the Prime Minister's Skill India programme which Rajiv Pratap Rudy's Skill Development Ministry is implementing, will adopt some of the training programmes.
Minister Rudy and the Army chief's wife Namita Suhag, who is also the President of the Army Wives Welfare Association (AWWA) jontly inaugurated the first Army Skill Training Centre (ASTC) at Delhi Cantonment.
The chief's wife is traditionally the ex-officio president of AWWA. The event also coincided with the Golden Jubilee of AWWA.
The minister said that the National Skill Development Council will make all army wives and wards who are undergoing training under the scheme eligible for being sponsored under the Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojna scheme.
In the initial phase, courses will be held in Information Technology, IT-enabled services, beauty & wellness programmes, apparel-making, handicraft etc. Trainees will get NSDC certification when they complete the courses, and will be assisted in finding jobs or starting their own small businesses.
