GULBARGA: Deputy Chairman of Planning Commission of India Montek Singh Ahluwalia laid the foundation stone for the country’s first Multi-Skill Development Centre here on Monday. Addressing the gathering, he said that inclusive growth would be given top priority in the 12th Five-Year Plan. He said such centres were needed owing to the growing demand for skilled labourers in India and abroad. Ahluwalia appreciated Germany for coming forward to train the labourers in this centre.
He indicated that the Planning Commission might consider opening two more such in the state — one each in Belgaum and Mangalore. “These centres would open up newer employment opportunities to the youth.”
Union Labour Minister Mallikarjun Kharge asked Ahluwalia to consider the state government’s proposal of laying railway line from Gadag to Wadi, connecting north Karnataka to Hyderabad-Karnataka. “The Union government already agreed to share half the project expenses.”
On granting special status to Hyderabad-Karnataka region under Article 371 of the Constitution, he said that Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh also asked the Planning Commission to focus on the backward regions.