"Training in Coir" Component of the "Development of Coir" Scheme

What is the Training in Coir scheme in Puducherry?

The "Training in Coir" component sits inside the "Development of Coir" scheme of the Department of Industries and Commerce, Union Territory of Puducherry, and is administered through the District Industries Centre at Thattanchavady. The Department imparts training in coir rope and coir mat making through coconut fibre, over a period of six months, with a stipend of Rs 1,500 per month per trainee.

The parent scheme's stated objective is to promote and develop coir and coir-based industry in the Union Territory of Puducherry. The training component's own objective is narrower and more specific: to develop coir and coir-based industry, to train the rural poor in producing coir products, and to generate employment thereby.

The economic logic is worth setting out, because coir is unusual among craft trades. Its raw material, coconut husk, is a by-product that a coconut-growing territory produces in quantity whether or not anyone uses it. Turning that husk into rope and mats requires skill and modest equipment rather than capital, and the products have a standing market. Training is therefore the binding constraint rather than finance, which is why the Department's coir intervention is built around a training stipend rather than a loan or subsidy.

What does the scheme pay?

The trainer's honorarium is structured per trainee with a ceiling, which caps the batch size the Department will fund at ten trainees per trainer. The raw material wastage compensation recognises something specific to a hands-on craft: a beginner learning to spin coir rope will spoil fibre, and without that allowance the trainer would be absorbing the cost of the learning curve.

Who is eligible for coir training?

You can apply if:

• You are a native of the Puducherry Union Territory, or have been a continuous resident for the past three years. A birth certificate, education certificate or residence certificate is accepted as proof.
• You are between 18 and 35 years of age.
• You are literate. The Department prescribes no specific educational qualification beyond that.

You are not eligible if:

• You have already been trained under this scheme. The citizen's charter states that already trained candidates are not eligible to apply.
• You are under 18 or over 35 years of age.
• You cannot establish nativity or three years of continuous residence in Puducherry with one of the accepted certificates.
• You are not literate, which is the one educational condition the Department does impose.

Where this component sits in the Development of Coir scheme

The training component is the entry point to a wider package, and knowing the rest helps a trainee plan beyond the six months:

The Advanced or High Skilled Training component carries the same eligibility conditions to 18 to 35 years, native or three-year resident, already trained candidates ineligible, but requires the educational qualification the host institution prescribes. It is the natural next step for a trainee who completes the six months and wants to go further.

What documents are required?

How to apply for Training in Coir

1. Watch the newspapers. The Department's citizen's charter states that the training round will be advertised in the newspapers. There is no standing application window.
2. Take a print of the prescribed application form for coir training, published on dic.py.gov.in, or collect the form from the Project Manager (Cottage Industries).
3. Fill in every mandatory field, paste the passport-sized photograph and sign across it where the form requires, and attach self-attested copies of your residence proof, age proof, literacy certificate and bank account details, together with the declaration that you have not previously been trained under the scheme.
4. Visit the Project Manager (Cottage Industries) of the District Industries Centre, Thattanchavady, Puducherry 605 009, on a working day during office hours, and submit the duly filled and signed form with the documents.
5. Collect your acknowledgement. On receipt, the office makes the entry in its application receipt register and assigns a unique number that identifies you in all further references and serves as the acknowledgement of receipt.
6. Attend the full six months once selected. The stipend is paid monthly per trainee across the training period, so attendance and continuation determine what is actually received.

How do I check the status of my application?

Quote the unique number issued at submission and follow up with the Project Manager (Cottage Industries) at the District Industries Centre, Thattanchavady. The charter names the Project Manager (Cottage Industries), DIC, as the contact officer for the coir training component, so all enquiries go to that desk.

Since batches are formed against a trainer's capacity — the honorarium ceiling implies roughly ten trainees per trainer per batch. An application may wait for the next batch rather than be refused. Ask whether your file is selected and awaiting a batch, or still under consideration.

Why applications get rejected, and how to fix them

• Age outside the 18 to 35 band, which is applied strictly for both the basic and advanced coir training components.
• Nativity or three-year residence not proved. Enclose a birth certificate, education certificate or residence certificate; the Department names all three.
• Already trained under the scheme, which the citizen's charter bars outright.
• Not literate, or no document evidencing literacy, which is the one educational condition.
• Applying outside an advertised round, when no call has been issued.
• Form incomplete or unsigned, or the photograph missing, which sends the file back before it reaches the register.
• Bank details missing, which delays the monthly stipend once the batch starts.
• Dropping out mid-course, which ends the stipend and, since already-trained candidates are ineligible to reapply, can complicate a later application.

Where to raise a grievance

The Department publishes its grievance redressal mechanism at industry.py.gov.in/grievance-redressal-mechanism. Grievances on coir components are raised first at the District Industries Centre, Industrial Estate, Thattanchavady, Puducherry 605 009.

If not redressed in time, the grievance is escalated to the General Manager, District Industries Centre, Thattanchavady, on 0413-2248987, 0413-2248391 or 0413-2249392, and thereafter to the Secretary to Government (Industries and Commerce), Chief Secretariat, Puducherry 605001, on 0413-2233207. The Director of Industries and Commerce, Industrial Estate, Thattanchavady, can be reached on 0413-2248476, 0413-2248168 or 0413-2248320. Karaikal applicants should approach the Functional Manager, District Industries Centre, Rural Industrial Estate, Kottucherry, Karaikal 609609, on 04368-266467.

The Department's citizen's charter is published at dic.py.gov.in. The application form and the training itself are free of cost to the trainee, and no agent is authorised to charge a fee for securing a place in a batch.