What we do:
Enrich Lives for nation building by providing global quality vocational training to disadvantaged, low-income rural youths regardless of prior educational background in order to equip them with the skills, knowledge, and practical experiences to become gainfully employed or employment creators.

Focus on Quality holistic, relevant skills development and capacity building as the primary tools to address barriers to educational, social, and economic mobility of vulnerable, unemployable persons ages 18-40.

OP JINDAL COMMUNITY COLLEGE

2014 - 15 in Review

There is a distinctive buzz in the air at OP Jindal Community College these days.  Reception areas are packed to the brim with eager young men and women patiently waiting their turn to meet with admission counsellors. Unlike four years ago at the inception of large-scale vocational classes, now people find out about OPJCC by word of mouth.  The good news is spreading: OPJCC offers high quality training that leads to decent, respectable jobs in construction, manufacturing, and hospitality services.  Due to increased hostel capacity, learners from 14 different states in India enrolled in the colleges in 2014-15 for skills training.  With a passion for uplifting India’s rural youths and a focus on imparting high quality technical vocational education and training, OPJCC is intent on transforming lives, helping youths realise their dreams while preparing a world-class, competitive workforce. 

Change epitomizes the 21st century workplace due in large part to technology and globalisation.  OPJCC’s technical vocational education and training stresses workplace and life skills to prepare individuals to collaborate and communicate effectively, practice occupational health and safety standards, solve problems, and act responsibly.  In so doing, dignity of labour, ethical behaviour, and respect for women and differently-abled persons in the workplace are underscored. These characteristics that incorporate the “Jindal Way” of expected work behaviours and attitudes distinguish OPJCC pass out students from their peers.

Learners are at the centre of OPJCC’s world.  Many students in vocational courses are school dropouts; however, senior secondary school pass outs are the second largest group.  What both groups have in common is the desire to learn by doing in order to earn.  OPJCC pass outs find work in the formal economy and they are increasingly working for themselves and creating jobs for others.  Employment is the primary education and training outcome of the college.  Self-respect and confidence in the learners are intentional by-products.   Achieving these results is only possible by focusing on quality.  Quality is predicated on having competent, experienced instructors and on-job-training supervision; industry standard infrastructure, machines, and equipment; relevant, needs-based student support services like counselling and job placement assistance; and innovative partnerships.

OPJCC for the People
Established in 2007 as a CSR education initiative, OPJCC today comprises five community colleges located in Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, and Odisha. School drop-out rates in these predominantly rural states are disproportionately high, especially among young adults. A chronic mismatch between educational outcomes and labour market skills has left millions of rural youths marginalized and unemployable. This results in a loss of valuable human potential and talent, as well as dashed aspirations.
OPJCC represents a bold investment in human development and a genuine commitment to India's future. Each college is open to all learners irrespective of prior educational experiences, gender, religious affiliation, and socio-economic status. OPJCC offers a range of industry-relevant training programmes for beginners, apprentices, and experienced professionals. Trainees range in age from 18 to 45 and include the educated unemployed/unemployable; uncertified workers; ITI, diploma, and degree holders seeking practical technical skills; site supervisors; government workers; vocational teachers; land sellers; and industry-sponsored candidates. Student counseling, job placement assistance, and after-care support make the transition from learning to earning easier.

To meet the skills development needs of local communities and the nation, OPJCC aims to:

• Prepare job-ready, competent certificate holders in market-demand sectors, specifically construction, mechanical, electrical, hospitality,  and select services through a variety of short- and medium-term government recognized courses of 4 months to 24 months duration;
• Provide supervised, on-job-training linking workplace and soft skills education to real work experiences;
• Offer on-site skills development, skills gap training, and upskilling of uncertified workers via RPL (Recognised Prior Learning);
• Cater to the needs of industry through customized training; and
• Facilitate training of trainers, assessors, and vocational teachers in construction and plumbing trades.

WAY FORWARD
To meet our annual target of skilling 10,000 persons, OPJCC will continue to partner with local, state, national, and international partners as well as industries to provide the best quality vocational training to rural India. To achieve this, OPJCC will continue to:

• Improve resource utilization
• Integrate instructional technology to accelerate learning
• Focus on instructional quality aligned with National Occupational Standards
• Extend service to peri-urban areas within catchment areas
• Align with state and local economic development plans
• Innovate for improved job placement assistance, retention, and tracking

OPJCC 2014-15 HIGHLIGHTS

• Rs 13,92,735 distributed to OPJCC students as training stipends by Raigarh District Dept. of Labour
• First Training Agency to conduct RPL for Plumbers in Odisha, NSDC IPSC
• Conducted Training-of-Trainers (ToT) for construction and plumbing for NSDC construction and plumbing sector councils.
• Selected official Training Agency for Raigarh Livelihood College – residential vocational training of women in hospitality and retail; visit launch CG CM Dr. R. Singh
• Launched E-Learning Vocational Center in collaboration with local government  in Raigarh; Wadhwani Foundation serves as technical partner
• ILO and OPJCC collaboration on training domestic workers through certificate programme funded by Dept. of Labour (CG)
• OPJCC approved as PIA for MoRD funding for training rural poor
• Selected as RPL Trainer and Assessment Center by DGET
• Conducted pre-military training for Raigarh District (CG)
• Provided computer certification course at ASHA the Hope and for secondary school girls a government school in Raigarh
• Trained JSPL personnel from Raigarh and Angul
• Provided pre-employment skills assessments of welders, fitters , and fabricators at SSD, Punjipathra
• Partnered with Raigarh District COO to conduct skills development household survey; 4000 completed to date
• Trained 96 males from Left Wing Extremist districts in CG
• OPJCC student pass rate on NSDC SSC exams: 84% construction; 94% plumbing (national average is 56 and 82% respectively
• Hosted & facilitated UNICF Programme on Sanitation for 45 government leaders
• Presented 2 poster sessions at an international conference on TVET in Bhopal

APRAJITA - Women's Training for Sustainable Livelihoods