Dimapur: Nagaland’s Deputy Chief Minister TR Zeliang on Friday inaugurated a Centre of Logistics Training for Excellence (COLTE) at Kushiabil in Dimapur, with the facility set to train around 400 unemployed youth from Nagaland and the Northeast every year.
The centre, the third COLTE established in the country by the Redington Foundation, is a joint initiative of the foundation, the Logistics Sector Skill Council, the CII Institute of Logistics and the Nagaland government. Training will be provided free of cost, with at least 20% of the beneficiaries targeted to be women and girls. The initiative also aims to provide 100% placement opportunities to trained candidates.
Zeliang said the centre would help connect Naga youth with employment opportunities in the logistics sector, which he described as one of the country’s fastest-growing industries.
Highlighting the state’s unemployment situation, Zeliang said more than 71,000 youth were registered with employment exchanges in Nagaland, while the actual number could be higher. He said 92% of registered unemployed youth lacked formal technical or vocational training, leaving many educated young people without clear livelihood opportunities.
He said the centre would provide industry-oriented training, national certification and improved employment prospects.
Adviser to the Nagaland Labour, Employment and Skill Development Department Moatoshi Longkumer said the COLTE could help bridge the gap between young people in the state and the growing manpower requirements of the logistics industry.
KV Mahidhar, board member of the Logistics Sector Skill Council, said rapid infrastructure development in India was creating significant opportunities in logistics. The centre would provide practical training in warehousing, inventory management, transport operations and logistics technology, he said.
B Ramaratnam, independent director of Redington Limited, said the Nagaland centre was established after COLTE facilities in Chennai and Hyderabad. He said it would focus on industry-oriented and technology-enabled training, with emphasis on employment and career progression.
During the programme, the Logistics Sector Skill Council and Zipaworld Innovation Pvt. Ltd. exchanged a memorandum of understanding for international placements of trained youth.