The spark that was ignited by the district administration of Erode in young Ramesh has turned into a guiding light for all tribal youths. He cleared the first stage of the UPSC examination by taking guidance from the Tribal Employment Outreach Centre (ToRCH) started by the district administration in Talavadi hills. Following in his footsteps, other students from remote areas of this Tamil Nadu district are also faring well in difficult competitive exams.
The ToRCH initiative, taken up by the District Collector of Erode, H Krishnanunni, is a hit with the youth of the district, with more and more turnout being seen with every passing day.
HIGHER COACHING COST
While speaking with Indian Masterminds, DC Erode, H Krishnanunni, said, “Whenever I go for inspections during assessments, we found that most youths in tribal areas are educated, either a graduate or a post-graduate. However, the main issue they face after completing their college is getting employment. This is mainly because of the socio-economic problems faced by them and the inaccessibility of the district employment centre, situated at the district headquarters.”
Facing socio economic problems like multi-dimensional poverty, unemployment, lack of infrastructure, migration etc., the youth are generally not aware of the opportunities and training programmes provided by the government. Secondly, they have to travel all the way to the district headquarter to prepare for various competitive exams. Being poor, they cannot afford private coaching which would cost a sizable sum of money. Hence, the district administration, under the guidance of the Collector, started a Tribal Employment Outreach Centre in remote areas of Erode to provide the youth with adequate resources to achieve their dream of getting a government job.
TRIBAL EMPLOYMENT OUTREACH CENTRE
By starting these outreach centres, the administration’s main aim is to open such a facility at a place more accessible to the youth. Mr. Krishnanunni said, “Secondly, the training we are providing to the youth is free of cost, hence, making it affordable for them.”
The training is provided by experts from various sectors on exam subjects as well as on capacity building aspects. Many senior government officials are also engaged in teaching the youth for exams like UPSC and TNPSC. Mr. Krishnanunni said, “The officers are voluntarily coming up to teach the youth in exams which they have cleared themselves.”
The centre is equipped with offline as well as e-learning facilities, along with a library which consists of over 500 books relating to competitive exams and personality development. The exam environment is simulated through continuous monitoring and evaluation.
The first ever ToRCH was inaugurated in Talavadi hills on 24 July, 2021 by the District Collector. It was followed by the Kadambur centre, which was inaugurated through online mode by Minister for Housing & Urban Development on January 13,2022. The third centre in Bargur hills was inaugurated by the Collector in April 2022.
Mr. Krishnanunni said, “A good response was seen, as 20 to 25 students enrolled immediately. Currently, all these three centres cater to around 100 students.”
RESULTS
Success came when three students from ToRCH cleared civil services exams, one of them being Ramesh, who cleared the preliminary stage of UPSC and is now preparing for the mains exam.
Due to his family situation, he was not able to join any private training centre by paying fees. However, he had great interest in clearing the All-India Service and, hence, enrolled in the ToRCH centre in Talavadi hills.
Besides Ramesh, two other students, Pavithra and Krishnan, have cleared the first stage of the state civil service exam of Tamil Nadu.
Mr. Krishnanunni said, “It is very inspiring to see students achieving such a feat with limited resources and while living in remotes areas. It seems the trend to prepare for competitive exams is catching up, as some women have also visited the centres to enroll themselves, and are now putting better use to their time.”
