Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) and Craftsman Training Scheme (CTS)

Industrial Training Institutes, or ITIs, are institutes that train young people in practical, hands-on trades such as electrician, fitter, welder, plumber, mechanic or computer operator. Most students join after Class 8 or Class 10 and train for six months to two years. The main course they follow is the Craftsmen Training Scheme (CTS), India's oldest national vocational training programme. ITIs are the backbone of India's supply of skilled workers for factories, workshops and services.

Why do they exist?

A country needs not only engineers and graduates but also skilled hands who can operate machines, repair equipment and wire buildings. After independence, India was starting big industries and needed many such workers quickly. Ordinary schools taught books, not trades. ITIs were set up to fill this gap and to give young people, especially from poorer families, a direct path to jobs.

Where did they come from?

• 1950: The Government of India started the Craftsmen Training Scheme, and about 50 ITIs were set up under it.
• 1956: Day-to-day running of ITIs was handed over to state governments and Union Territories. The Centre kept the job of setting standards, syllabus and exams.
• 1969: Financial control of ITIs was also transferred to the states.
• 1961: Parliament passed the Apprentices Act, 1961, which made on-the-job training in companies a formal part of the system.
• 2014-2015: A new Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) was created in 2014. On 16 April 2015, the training and apprenticeship wings were moved from the Ministry of Labour and Employment to MSDE. These became the Directorate General of Training (DGT).
• 2018: The National Council for Vocational Education and Training (NCVET) was approved as the single regulator for skilling, taking over the regulatory role of the older National Council for Vocational Training (NCVT) and the National Skill Development Agency.

How are ITIs run? Who does what?

• The Centre (DGT under MSDE): Sets the course content (syllabus), standards, affiliation rules and the national exam. It also runs central training institutes for instructors.
• State governments: Own and run government ITIs, appoint staff, admit students and pay most running costs.
• Private ITIs: Run by private bodies but must get affiliation and follow DGT norms.

A simple way to picture it: DGT is like a central exam board that sets the syllabus and gives the certificate, while the states run the actual "schools".

How big is the network?

As per DGT data, India has about 14,955 ITIs: around 3,248 government and 11,707 private, with about 26.6 lakh trainees enrolled. So roughly three out of four ITIs are private, but government ITIs are often larger and cheaper for students.

How does the Craftsmen Training Scheme work?

Step by step:

1. A student who has passed Class 8, 10 or 12 (depending on the trade) joins an ITI.
2. They pick a trade. There are about 150 or more trades, both engineering (fitter, electrician, turner) and non-engineering (stenography, dress making, computer operator).
3. Courses last six months to two years and are mostly practical work in workshops, with some theory.
4. All CTS trades are aligned to the National Skills Qualifications Framework (NSQF), which ranks every course by skill level so employers know its value.
5. At the end, students take the All India Trade Test (AITT).
6. Those who pass get the National Trade Certificate (NTC), recognised for jobs in government and private sectors, in India and abroad.
7. After this, many join apprenticeships in companies under the Apprentices Act, 1961, and get a National Apprenticeship Certificate.

Bridges to higher education

ITI students used to hit a dead end if they wanted further studies. Now, under an arrangement between DGT and the National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS), ITI trainees can earn Class 10 or Class 12 equivalent certificates by taking a few extra subjects. This opens the door to diplomas and degrees.

Training the trainers

Instructors are trained under the Craft Instructor Training Scheme (CITS), mainly at National Skill Training Institutes (NSTIs) run by DGT. Good instructors are as important as good machines.

Commonly confused concepts

• ITI vs Polytechnic: An ITI trains craftsmen and technicians in a single trade, often after Class 10, for 1 to 2 years, under MSDE/DGT. A polytechnic offers three-year diploma courses in engineering branches and is regulated through the AICTE and state technical education boards. A polytechnic diploma is a higher qualification.
• ITI vs NSTI: ITIs train students. NSTIs are DGT's own central institutes that mainly train instructors and run advanced courses.
• CTS vs Apprenticeship Training Scheme: CTS is training inside the ITI. Apprenticeship is training inside a real workplace, with a stipend, under the Apprentices Act, 1961.
• NCVT vs NCVET: NCVT was the old advisory body that certified ITI courses. NCVET (2018) is the newer, single regulator for the whole vocational training system.

Issues, criticism and the way forward

• Empty instructor posts: A 2023 NITI Aayog study reported that only about 36% of sanctioned instructor posts were filled in the ITIs it studied.
• Low seat use: The same study found that many seats go unfilled, which raises the cost per student and wastes capacity.
• Outdated trades and machines: Many ITIs still teach on old equipment, while industry now needs skills in automation, electric vehicles, solar power and data.
• Weak industry links and poor placement: Without industry ties, many trainees do not find jobs that match their training.
• Social image: Many families see ITIs as a "second choice" compared to college, which keeps good students away.
• Way forward: NITI Aayog and other experts suggest filling instructor posts, linking courses to local industry, grading ITIs on job outcomes, giving ITI students easy routes to higher education, and making industry a real partner in running ITIs. The PM-SETU scheme is built on this last idea.

Concepts to Know

• Vocational training: Training for a specific job or trade, focused on hands-on skills rather than only bookish knowledge.
• Trade: A particular skilled job, like electrician or welder, for which a full ITI course is designed.
• Affiliation: Official recognition that lets an institute run a course and lets its students sit the national exam.
• National Skills Qualifications Framework (NSQF): A national ladder that ranks courses by level of skill, so a certificate means the same thing everywhere in India.
• Apprenticeship: Learning a job while working in a real company under a trained supervisor, usually with a stipend (a small monthly payment).
• NIOS: The National Institute of Open Schooling, a government board under the Ministry of Education that lets people complete Class 10 and 12 through open (distance) learning.