SUMMARY AND POLICY IMPLICATIONS
Equity is regarded as one of the most important policy objectives of education in India. In an attempt to provide fore quality of opportunity to the scheduled castes/scheduled tribes-the two most educationally deprived groups-a number of incentives and facilities have been provided to them at different educational levels, that is, elementary, secondary, technical, vocational and higher.
Industrial and technical training has been considered important specially from the viewpoint of improving productivity of the scheduled groups who have been traditionally engaged in certain trades like carpentry, blacksmith, etc. Seats have been reserved for them in institutions imparting vocational and technical training as well as in hostels. Eligibility conditions for admissions in their cases are relaxed. Stipend and various other incentives such as free equipment and stationery, and free uniform are also provided to them to motivate children belonging to these groups avail of these facilities in large numbers. Special ITIs were also started in some tribal areas.
It was hoped that these measures will enable many people belonging to the scheduled castes and scheduled tribes avail of the ITI facilities and improve their employability and productivity ultimately resulting in raising their economic status.
Practically three decades have passed since these facilities were made available. It is, however, not known as to what facilities are actually available in the ITIs and how far those have been utilised by the scheduled groups? Which trades are more popular and why? What is the impact of training in respect of employment of the scheduled castes and the scheduled tribes? And, finally what incentives are actually available, are these adequate and is the implementation effective etc." This study has been undertaken to answer some of these questions.
The major objectives of the study are :
(1) to analyse the provision and utilisation of training facilities in the ITIs by the scheduled castes and scheduled tribes students;
98 Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in Industrial Training Institutes
(2) to study the extent of underutilisation, if any, of various training facilities;
(3) to identify special programmes of technical and industrial training for the scheduled tribes students in the institutions located in the tribal areas and also to determine the utilisation of such programmes;
(4) to investigate the extent and causes of drop-out in these institutions;
(5) to assess the impact of the training provided by the ITIs on the employment of their trainees, specially the scheduled castes/scheduled tribes in terms of emoluments, waiting time, place and sector of employment etc.; and
(6) to identify the various incentive schemes that are available for the scheduled castes/scheduled tribes students, pattern of their implementation and extent of benefits the scheduled castes/ scheduled tribes students are deriving from such schemes.
The study covered the states of Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra. Three districts from each of these states were selected purposively such that one district was comparatively advanced, one was average and one a backward district. One tribal ITT was also selected from each of the five states for this study. Data were collected from the students, principals, teachers and ex-trainees with the help of schedules specially developed for the purpose. Besides primary data, secondary data were collected from the records of Directorate General of Employment and Training (DGE& T) and were analysed to understand macro-level situation.
Major Findings and Conclusions
Utilisation of ITI Facilities The industrial training facilities have been available in all the states of the country in varying degrees. The seating capacity per lakh of population varied from state to state. It was more than 50 in some states but less than 15 in certain other states. The union territories of Chandigarh and Delhi and industrially advanced states had substantially more seats per lakh of population in their ITIs in comparison to others. Among the selected states Gujarat and Maharashtra had better facilities compared to Andhra Pradesh, Bihar and Madhya Pradesh.
Summary and Policy Implications 99
Seats were almost fully utilised in most of the states. In some states the utilisation was more than the seats sanctioned indicating greater demand for vocational and technical training facilities in those states. Seats were underutilised in Assam, Bihar, Meghalaya, Tripura and West Bengal. Of the states where seats were underutilised, three are educationally backward. Underutilisation of seats in West Bengal needs special probe since the state is industrially advanced.
In certain institution enrolment in some of the trades was more than die sanctioned number of seats while in others the seats remained underutilised. Fitter, turner, wireman and machinist trades among the two year engineering trades and sheet metal worker, moulder and welder among the one-year engineering trades were more popular. All these trades did not require any science background. Moreover, the minimum qualification for admission in these trades was only class VIII whereas in many other trades the minimum admission requirement was class X with science background. Among the non-engineering trades, stenography was the most popular.
Scheduled castes enrolment in the total enrolment in the ITIs increased from 6.9 per cent in 1960 to 13.3 per cent in 1980 which was almost equal to their proportion in the total population in the country, that is, 15 per cent. Percentage of scheduled tribes in the total enrolment similarly improved from 1.1 per cent in 1960 to 3.7 per cent in 1980, but it was still much below their proportion in the total population. Concerted efforts are, therefore, needed to raise the enrolment of the scheduled tribes in the ITIs.
There were no differences in the tradewise utilisation of seats by the scheduled castes, scheduled tribes and others. This might be due to tradewise reservation in the ITIs. While giving admission in a particular trade, the aptitude or ability of the trainees was, however, seldom taken into account. The students were admitted to a course where they applied. It was found atone place that a student having more than 60 per cent marks was admitted in blacksmith trade while another with less than 40 percent marks was admitted to electrical trade. Not only there was no vocational guidance, this was not considered as part of his duty by the head of that ITI. As most of the scheduled castes and scheduled tribes are first generation learners, it seems essential that proper guidance be provided to them in choosing any particular trade. A three-day orientation course at the beginning of the training focussing on the nature of the trade and also what a person can expect out of it in terms of job opportunities and wages may prove very useful in helping a student make better choice.
100 Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in Industrial Training Institutes
Although seats have been reserved for the scheduled castes and scheduled tribes in the ITIs in all the states but the criterion was not the same. Seats were reserved in Andhra Pradesh and Bihar in proportion to the population of the scheduled caste in the respective states, but in Gujarat and Maharashtra the reservation quota for the scheduled castes far exceeded their proportion in the state's population. For scheduled tribes seats reservation was according to their proportion in the total population of each state. Besides this, as pointed out earlier, there have been special ITIs in the tribal areas which are basically meant for the scheduled tribes people only.
The scheduled castes not only fully utilised their quota but, at time, there was over-utilisation. Scheduled tribes have however, not been able to use their reserved quota fully. They were not only grossly under represented in the general ITIs but even in the special ITIs located in tribal area, their quota was seldom utilised. This was generally due to a shortfall in number of applicants in comparison to the seats reserved for them as in Gujarat, but a more important reason for this phenomenon was the fact that whereas seats for them in all the ITIs were allotted according to their proportion in the total population in the state, in most of the districts the scheduled tribes population has been negligible. Keeping in view the uneven spread of the tribal population as also the fact that most ITIs get their students from within the district, it is suggested that the seats reservation for the scheduled tribes be made districtwise.
Some inter-caste and tribewise differences in the use of facilities were noted in the states where such data were collected. In Bihar among the scheduled castes, Chamars, Dusadha and Dobi utilised the training facilities to far greater extent than other castes, while, among the scheduled tribes, this was the case with Oraons and Mundas. In Gujarat, Parmars have made the greater use of the facilites among the scheduled groups. In Maharashtra, Mahars occupied more than half the seats meant for the scheduled castes while, among the scheduled tribes, Mahadev Koli accounted for more than 80 per cent of the tribal enrolment in selected institutions. It would be useful to make an in-depth study of the reasons For higher enrolment of particular caste groups than others? Is it their numerical preponderance in State's scheduled population or political power; or is the occupational pattern or higher economic status which help in better utilisation of facilities?
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Performance of Trainees and Reasons for Dropout Pass percentage in the ITIs in Assam, Karnataka, Meghalaya and Nagaland was less than 50 per cent. It was observed that the same had declined over time. Only 66 per cent of the students enrolled in the ITIs completed the training in 1981 as against 80 per cent in 1976. This increase in wastage in the ITIs, where the training is at a much higher cost than the general education is a matter of great concern and therefore, needs probing. Failure rates among the scheduled groups were a little higher than among the non-scheduled population.
Drop out rates among the trainees differed from state to state and institution to institution. They ranged from about 5% in one ITI in Andhra Pradesh to about 40% in an ITI in Gujarat. There were, however, no marked differences in the dropout rates between the scheduled and nonscheduled groups. Major part of the drop out occured during first two months because most of such dropouts got admission to alternative courses, that is, general secondary education. In order to make ITI training sufficiently attractive there is need to provide for vertical and horizontal mobility.
The reasons for dropout as gathered from the office records and opinions of the principals, teachers and students were: (i) many of the scheduled groups students got employment even without completing training; (ii) they were not able to withstand the rigour of the training; (iii) they were basically interested in stipend, therefore, they did not give importance to their studies and consequently failed; and (iv) because of home circumstaces they had to absent themselves occasionally and were not able to pick up their studies again. Financial reason turned out to be the most important though some part was also played by academic reasons suggesting the need of remedial classes for them.
Employment Pattern of Ex-trainees After completion of training the students either go in for apprenticeship training in the industries or take up some employment. One of the professed objectives of this training is to prepare students for self-employment. Although the present analysis of employment pattern of extrainees in term of their activity status, waiting period for job, sector and tenure of employment and employment suffers from sample limitation and hence, it is not possible to generalise from the results; some broad indications can still be had when one compares scheduled an non-
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scheduled groups. While about 10 percent of all the ex-trainees contacted were reported to be unemployed, the unemployment rate among the scheduled tribes was practically double (20.7 per cent). In view of job reservation for the scheduled groups, this aspect needs to be probed further. There was a long gap between completion of the training, and getting a job. Self-employment among all the ex- trainees was only 8 per cent and was much smaller among the scheduled castes and scheduled tribes. In order to promote self-employment there is need to include some aspect of management in the content of ITI curricula. Collaborative seminars with the bank personnel and some modules on self-employment may also be useful.
The fact that about 40 per cent of ITI ex-trainees from all the three groups worked as apprentices in the industries points to the need that industries should be asked to partly share the burden of the training by providing finances for further development of the Ms on the one hand and giving technical help on the other hand.
Incentives for Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe Trainees The major incentives for the scheduled castes and scheduled tribes in the ITI are stipend, free equipment and uniform, reservation of seats, relaxation in marks and provision of seats in general hostels for them as well as special hostels for the scheduled tribes in tribal areas.
Reservation was being practiced in all the states in varying degrees and relaxation in marks was also allowed though it was implemented in a very mechanical way without due regard to ability and aptitude of the students.
Stipend was available to all the scheduled castes and schedule tribes students in the ITIs though its rate differed between the tribal and general ITIs. Moreover, the amount was too meagre to provide any meaningful relief to the scheduled groups whose poverty is object. This was opined by all the respondents principals, teachers and students. A minimum of Rs. 100/- for the day scholars, and Rs. 150/- p.m. for hostelers was suggested by one and all in 1981. Currently, it would be necessary to increase this amount still further.
It was surprising to note that the stipend amount differed within the same institution for different scheduled groups. This anamoly arose because different agencies giving the stipend have different rates. In order to avoid heart burning among the students it is necessary to make the stipend amount uniform.
Summary and Policy Implications 103
Long and complicated procedures for release of grant to different ITIs resulted in considerable delays in the disbursement of the stipend, and meant considerable hardship to poor students who, due to financial difficulties, were forced to leave the training in the middle without completing it. The main reasons for the delay in stipend disbursement seemed to be the bureaucratic procedure and lack of sufficient and committed staff. The stipend was released only after the names of the students with at least one month attendance were received by the awarding agencies. These agencies thereafter scrutinised the applications and released the money to the institutions. The money was often disbursed by the regular staff of the institution who gave more importance to other administrative matters. It is suggested that the money should be placed at the disposal of the principal before the start of each session. It should be given as soon as students get admitted. Subsequently amount can be tagged to regular attendance. Additional office staff for the purpose may also be sanctioned if the number of scheduled groups students is large. Besides stipend money, the other incentives like equipment, uniform etc. need also to be provided in time.
Hostel facilities for scheduled castes and scheduled tribes were not available in all the institutions. Moreover, wherever they existed, they were far less than the demand which resulted in heavy overcrowding. Most of the hostels provided only boarding facilities without any common mess. Students did their own cooking without any proper facilities for the same. At places even boarding facilities were substandard and not congenial for a reasonable living. Here one should be clear whether hostel is a place to keep the deprived or place to provide teaming environment ? Hostels for scheduled castes and scheduled tribes who do not live in the area where ITI are located is necessary and each student should get at least the minimum facilities like a cot, a chair and a table. Mess should be common and maintenance allowance should be raised to enable these students devote full time to training. There is no need of separate hostels for scheduled castes and scheduled tribes as no instance of caste rivalry came to our notice.
Special ITIs Special ITIs have been setup in tribal areas with a view to help the tribal youth acquire necessary skills needed for newly established industries in those areas. Some of these ITIs were started by Labour Ministry, while others were established by the Tribal Welfare Department. For the present study one ITI was selected from each of the five states.
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The intake capacity of the special ITIs ranged from 76 in Ahwa to 203 in Bastar. Reservation of seats for the scheduled tribes differed in different ITIs. In the ITI at Upper Sileru in Visakhapatnam district, 50 per cent seats were reserved for the scheduled tribes and 35 per cent for the scheduled castes. Fifteen per cent of the seats were meant for other categories. In Ranchi ITI only 54 seats were reserved for the scheduled tribes. In contrast, in the ITIs at Bastar and Ahwa all the seats were reserved for the tribes. Further, even in the special ITIs, except the one at Visakhapatnam, there was substantial under-utilisation of seats by the tribes. In fact, in the special ITI at Ahwa, the total enrolment was around 75 per cent of the intake capacity. In this ITI 60 per cent of the seats were filled in by the non-tribals. One can also observe great tradewise differences in the utilisation of seats by the tribes in these ITIs.
Dropout rate in the special ITIs were generally low but they ranged from 14 per cent in one ITI to about 35 per cent in another ITI. A systematic study of 22 dropouts over a period of five years from one ITI revealed that about one-third left the course because they were able to get jobs - mostly white collar - even before completion of the vocational training. Among other reasons for dropout accommodation problem turned out to be a very important reasons (Ahwa ITI did not have a hostel). In fact, even where an ITI had an attached hostel and a good building too, it did not have a congenial atmosphere for study. This was because most of these hostels had more students than their capacity. There was no common mess facility and in one of these special ITIs students cooked food inside their rooms on fire wood.