Maruti Suzuki India has announced a special higher education scheme for its shop-floor technicians.
The company has signed a MoU with the Haryana State Board of Technical Education and the Haryana-IGNOU Society for Community Education and Training. On offer is a three-year diploma in engineering for its shop-floor technicians.
The MoU was signed by Mr K.K. Kataria, Additional Secretary from the Haryana State Board, Mr Mukesh Chadha, Member Secretary from the Haryana-IGNOU, and Mr Rajesh Uppal, Executive Director, Maruti Suzuki India.
The initiative is aimed at enhancing the knowledge and skill-sets of Maruti's workforce for meeting the future business needs of the company.
Sharing the merits of the initiative, Mr. S.Y. Siddiqui, Chief Operating Officer (Administration), said: “This is an unique initiative, the first of its kind in the industry. Usually, higher education opportunities are offered at executive level in corporates. This initiative will address the career aspirations of technician colleagues. It is also a significant move to align with the national skill upgradation programme to create a pool of trained and skilled manpower.’’
Explaining the benefits, Mr M.M. Singh, Chief Operating Officer (Production), said: “With this initiative, the company has taken a long-term career progression view of shop-floor technicians. A special team was set up internally to study the demands of the industry and the course was designed around those specific manufacturing needs.’’