IIM Ranchi joined hands with National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) to promote tribal entrepreneurship in Jharkhand.
The Integrated Program in Management (IPM) students presented their findings of social internship and shared possible policy interventions to higher officials of the ministry of skill development and entrepreneurship (MSDE — which holds 49 per cent share capital of NSDC) and NSDC (a public limited company set up by the Union finance ministry) at Delhi on Monday.
This was followed by MoU between the IIM and the NSDC.
“IIM Ranchi and NSDC demonstrating their commitment towards sustainable socio-economic development and with an aim of fostering positive transformation in tribal communities have signed the MoU to promote tribal entrepreneurship in Jharkhand.
“IIM Ranchi has designed a unique internship programme to provide relevant exposure to students by making them an integral part of planning and strategy development efforts at Singi Dai Van Vigyan Kendra, a multi-skill development centre at Gumla,” said IIM faculty Angshuman Hazarika.
“The focus of the programme is on key segments such as medicinal plants, horticulture and aromatic essential oil segments in tune with the local resources and culture. IIM would be the knowledge partner for Van Vigyan Kendra which aims to provide skill training, entrepreneurial training, market linkage and technology leverage to the tribal populace, particularly women to expand their livelihood opportunity,” said Hazarika.
As part of the initiative, the second-year IPM students of IIM Ranchi completed their five-day visit at Vikas Bharati, Bishanpur in Gumla, which provided thorough insights on rural development initiatives and allowed them to ponder and tinker with innovative solutions to promote sustainability, benefitting the locals.
IIM Ranchi students divided themselves into their enterprises and worked on marketing plans that provided strategies for better agricultural production and community engagement. The one-month internship programme has successfully trained interns across nine batches, comprising three groups each from three verticals which worked together on one enterprise.
“The initiative also serves as an opportunity for students to fine-tune their basics and fundamentals on rural marketing, cooperative societies and mutually aided self-help groups under the guidance of faculty members of IIM and other experts, enabling them to make a significant impact on increasing demand for local products in national and international markets,” added a senior faculty at the IIM.
“On the completion of the project, students worked on the industry-market linkage plan and the best-pitched plan will be implemented in NSDC-funded multi-skill development cum women empowerment Centre at Balatu, Jharkhand,” said the faculty.