Vocational Training for VJNT and SBC Candidates Studying in Government Industrial Training Institute, Maharashtra

What is the Vocational Training scheme for VJNT and SBC candidates?

Vocational Training for VJNT and SBC Candidates Studying in Government Industrial Training Institute is a Maharashtra scheme that puts unemployed young people from the Vimukta Jati, Nomadic Tribe and Special Backward Class communities through short trade courses at a Government Industrial Training Institute and pays their course fee for them. The state introduced it in 2003-04 with self-employment as the stated aim, on the reasoning that a short, certified trade skill is a faster route out of casual labour for these communities than a longer academic qualification.

The scheme is run by the Other Backward Bahujan Welfare Department, which citizens usually call the VJNT, OBC and SBC Welfare Department, working with the network of Government ITIs under the state's skills and vocational training directorate. Because two departments are involved, the paperwork is split: the ITI handles admission and training, and the welfare department funds it.

Two things are given. The training fee, between Rs 400 and Rs 2,400 depending on the course, is paid directly to the ITI, so the trainee never pays out of pocket and never receives that money as cash. On completing the training the trainee gets a tool kit worth Rs 1,000, handed over through the same Government ITI. The tool kit is the part that makes the self-employment aim practical, since a certificate without tools does not start a workshop.

Who is eligible for the VJNT and SBC vocational training scheme?

You can apply if:

• You belong to a notified Vimukta Jati or Nomadic Tribe caste (VJ-A, NT-B, NT-C or NT-D) or to the Special Backward Class, and you hold a caste certificate from the competent authority.
• You are a resident of Maharashtra.
• You are unemployed or a student seeking a vocational skill, which is the group the scheme was framed for.
• You meet the minimum qualification the specific trade requires, which the ITI sets course by course.
• You are seeking training at a Government ITI, not a private institute.

You are not eligible and cannot apply if:

• Your caste falls outside the VJNT and SBC lists. Scheduled Caste, Scheduled Tribe and Other Backward Class candidates have parallel training schemes under their own departments and must use those.
• You are not a Maharashtra resident.
• You want the training at a private or unaided institute. Only Government ITIs are covered.
• You do not meet the trade's minimum qualification, for example a course that requires Class 10 pass.
• You have already taken the same benefit for the same trade. The tool kit is a one-time issue on completion.

Selection is not automatic even where you qualify. The Principal of the concerned Government ITI and the Assistant Commissioner for Social Welfare of the district select trainees jointly, and seats in a short-course batch are limited.

What documents do I need?

How to apply for vocational training under this scheme

1. Find your nearest Government Industrial Training Institute. Every district in Maharashtra has at least one, and the district skill development office can confirm which trades run there.
2. Ask the Principal's office for the current list of short-duration vocational courses and for the intake dates of the next batch. Batches do not start on a single statewide date, so this step decides your timeline.
3. Submit the application form with your caste certificate, domicile certificate, Aadhaar, last marksheet, photographs and bank passbook copy. Collect a dated acknowledgement.
4. Wait for selection, which is made by the ITI Principal together with the district Assistant Commissioner for Social Welfare. Selected candidates are informed by the ITI.
5. Join the batch on the date given. Your training fee is billed by the ITI to the welfare department, so confirm at joining that you have been recorded under the VJNT and SBC scheme and are not being asked to pay the fee yourself.
6. Complete the training and collect the Rs 1,000 tool kit from the ITI after completion, along with your course certificate.

What else can an ITI trainee claim at the same time?

Trainees regularly qualify for more than one benefit, and the schemes are administered separately, so each has to be claimed on its own.

• Rs 500 a month stipend at Government ITIs. Under a Government Resolution of the state skills and entrepreneurship department dated 13 September 2023, all Government ITI trainees, across Open, OBC, SBC, EWS, VJ-A, NT-B, NT-C, NT-D, SC and ST categories, receive Rs 500 a month from the 2023-24 session onward. This is not limited to VJNT and SBC candidates.
• Maintenance allowance to VJNT and SBC students in ITI. A separate welfare department scheme pays Rs 40 to Rs 100 a month for 10 months to VJNT and SBC ITI trainees whose parent's or guardian's annual income does not exceed Rs 65,290. This one is claimed through the scholarship route rather than at the ITI counter.
• Post-matric scholarship, if you are simultaneously enrolled in a recognised post-matric course. That is applied for on MahaDBT 2.0 at mahadbt2.maharashtra.gov.in.

Ask your ITI which of these your batch is already covered for, because the stipend in particular is applied at institute level and does not need a separate form.

How do I check the status of my application?

There is no online tracker for this scheme, so status is checked in person:

1. At the Government ITI Principal's office, using your acknowledgement, for selection status and batch allotment.
2. At the office of the Assistant Commissioner for Social Welfare in your district, for the funding side, meaning whether your fee bill has been sanctioned and whether the tool kit consignment has been released.
3. On the helpline 1800 120 8040 of the VJNT, OBC and SBC Welfare Department for scheme-level questions.

Why applications fail, and what to do about it

• Caste certificate does not name a VJNT or SBC caste. Apply to the Tahsildar or Sub-Divisional Officer for a corrected certificate before the next batch.
• No seats left in the batch. Ask to be recorded for the following batch rather than reapplying from scratch, and consider a different Government ITI in the district.
• Trade qualification not met. Choose a trade with a lower entry requirement; the short-course list usually includes options at Class 8 and Class 10 level.
• Bank account not in the candidate's name or not Aadhaar-seeded, which blocks the stipend even when the training itself proceeds.
• Approached a private institute. Only Government ITIs are covered, and fees paid to a private institute are not reimbursed afterwards.
• Tool kit not received after completion. Follow up with the ITI first, since kits are procured and distributed in lots, and escalate to the Assistant Commissioner for Social Welfare if the ITI has not received the consignment.

Where do I complain?

• VJNT, OBC and SBC Welfare Department, Annex Building 139, First Floor, Mantralaya, Madam Cama Road, Hutatma Rajguru Chowk, Mumbai 400032, helpline 1800 120 8040.
• Assistant Commissioner for Social Welfare in your district, who is a selecting authority under this scheme and therefore the right first escalation.
• Principal of the Government ITI for anything about admission, batch dates, training quality or the tool kit handover.

No fee should be collected from a selected candidate under this scheme. If an ITI asks you to pay the course fee yourself, ask in writing whether you have been enrolled under the VJNT and SBC scheme, and take the reply to the Assistant Commissioner for Social Welfare.