India Skills Kerala: ODEPC Stall Draws Visitors Curious about Nursing Job in UK

KOZHIKODE:
For young nurses aspiring to go to the UK, the Overseas Development & Employment Promotion Consultants Ltd (ODEPC) that is part of a mega exhibition at India Skills Kerala 2020 here, offers advice about the Global Learners Programme (GLP), the Kerala Department of Labour & Skills has launched for nurses.

Keen to learn about GLP, several aspirants, including 21-year-old Theresa Abraham, are briefed at the stall on the details about the programme that facilitates recruitment of nurses to Britain.

The officials at the stall in Swapna Nagari describe to Theresa about the “golden opportunity” to work in the UK’s government hospitals for three years so that she boosts her professional qualification by improving subject knowledge and practical expertise.

A BSc in General Nursing, Theresa learns that there is no age bar for the applicants of GLP. The course is open for males as well. “You need to have at least six months of continuous clinical experience and a valid nursing council registration,” they inform her. “Also, the present gap in one’s employment must not exceed one year.”

Equally important, the candidate must have a valid IELTS/OET score as per the requirements of the London-headquartered Nursing and Midwifery Council that functions as a statutory body since 2002 with the aim of protecting the health of the public.

The February 22-24 India Skills Kerala 2020, which has 253 participants competing in 39 disciplines for prizes totalling Rs 78 lakhs, enables the winners to vie at the national level later this year. The victors there get a chance to represent the country at World Skills 2021 at Shanghai in China.

ODEPC, which has been providing quality manpower since 1977, is the country’s first recruiting agency in the government sector. Registered with the Ministry of External Affairs, it helps connect potential candidates with an employer.

Guaranteeing Band 5 salary and free air ticket to the UK, GLP enables three months’ free accommodation on arrival and certificate of sponsorship fee fully paid by the NHS. While working time is 37.5 hours per week with overtime duty facilities, the international exposure develops the professional’s skills in a big way.

ODEPC is also carrying out recruitments in Saudi Arabia, the Maldives, Qatar, Oman, the UAE and Kuwait for engineers, teachers, doctors, skilled technicians and drivers besides nurses and paramedical staff. Further, it provides training to IELTS/OET in its centres at Thiruvananthapuram, Ernakulam, Angamaly and New Delhi. For registration, visit www.odepc.kerala.gov.in.

Not far from the ODEPC stall is a kiosk highlighting the mission of the Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Kendra. Known by its acronym PMKK, it has established state-of-the-art model training centres in each of the country’s district, ensuring coverage in all the parliamentary constituencies. “We have allotted 812 centres, and established 723,” a senior PMKK official reveals. “We have capacity to groom more than nine lakh trainees.”

Providing 250-odd courses with duration of three to six months, they are industry-driven and also featuring short-term training programmes. There are smart classrooms, audio-visual aids and biometric attendance, besides cells for counselling, mobilization and placement.

The Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, along with National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC), is into providing technical training with the aim of making India the ‘Skill Capital of the World’.