The Centre for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (CIE), Jamia Milia Islamia under the Aspire Scheme, Ministry of MSME, GoI, had set up a Livelihood Business Incubator (LBI) in 2016. It is an Entrepreneurship Development Program (EDP) to enable participants to set up their own business units. This year some new programmes have been added to it.
Training programs, including the new add-ons, consist of packaged drinking water, bakery products, PET bottle making, spice grinding and packing, beautician training, computer hardware networking, tailoring and machine embroidery. On the list of forthcoming training programs, you’ll find – gem/jewellery making, sanitary napkin making, chocolate coating, ice cream cone and wafer making, tomato ketchup, paste and fruit juice making.
According to a 2017 LBI pamphlet, “These programmes enable participants and prospective entrepreneurs learn product manufacturing, technology development, business development and help unemployed youth acquire the skill for enterprise building and also incubate them to become successful small business owners.”
The pamphlet also mentions the following objectives of the LBI Training Programme:
1) Self Employment Generation among aspiring startup entrepreneurs.
2) Accelerate the development of new entrepreneurs
3) Integrated support by way of providing hands-on training
4) To boost the development of small enterprises in the manufacturing and service sectors
5) To provide skilled manpower to MSME
The duration of the programmes is six weeks and the fee is 3000 INR. The age for eligibility to the programmes is 18 years and above. Qualification criteria are 5th pass for tailoring, 12th pass for computer hardware and networking, and 8th pass for other programs. Normally 20 students are admitted in the course.
This year as add-ons to the LBI, Jamia launched its own packaged drinking water ‘JMI Jal’ on the campus along with the bakery products produced by the participants at LBI. These products are available for sale for staff and students through its newly established outlet, JMI Baker’s and Café, on the campus. The administration (including deans, directors, and heads of departmens) and the staff have also been advised to buy these products for official events, functions, and meetings.
Aleem Ahmed, a student of Jamia Millia while talking to this correspondent said, “I feel all universities should have vocational courses that are also professional to a certain extent. This will allow the students to get a degree without much prior education and get a well paying job later on while doing what they love to do.”
Zishan Hussain Khan, Director Centre for Innovation and Entrepreneurship said that these courses have not only become very popular in the University but also different parts of the country. He further added that students are not only being provided training for projects established by the MSME but also at the University’s business incubator which is a unique model for making the centre self-sustainable.
The endeavour is in line with the Central Government’s Skill India Mission.
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