Land has been identified for 92 of those proposed ITIs which require a staff strength in the range of 1,500-2,000, state's Labour Minister P T Parameshwara Naik told reporters here today. The state government would partly fund the project cost, he said, adding that the Centre would extend assistance for purchase of equipment for ITIs. Loans would also be raised from Nabard.
Naik, however, denied charges there was "discrimination" against opposition parties in identifying the places where the ITIs would come up. He said Rs 900 crore would be spent on building professional schools and housing complexes for construction workers and their family members, as also a Construction academy near Doddaballapura for which 20 acres of land has already been identified.
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This fund would be raised from the one per cent building and construction workers cess which has now topped more than Rs 1,835 crore, the minister said. The government would provide a Rs 30,000 medical cover per annum to 4.3 million BPL ration-card holders from December, in the first phase, whereby the beneficiaries are entitled for treatment in 640 empanelled hospitals, the Minister said.
Insurance premium for the initiative is around Rs 200 crore, 75 per cent of which would come from the Centre.