NSTI, Trivandrum Commits to Produce 25,000 Masks for Kerala Police

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM:
In a bid to help in the ongoing fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, National Skill Training Institute (NSTI), Trivandrum under the aegis of the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) produced 500 masks in 3 days for the police personnel on duty and the general public.

The NSTI is helping the Kerala State Police Department that has taken on the assignment of manufacturing and distributing a sizable number of reusable mask. In light of the spread of COVID 19, wearing masks has been made mandatory by the Home Ministry for all people in public places. The  Prime Minister has also emphasized on the using of masks and following norms of social distancing, in his public address to the nation.

Applauding the initiative, Dr Mahendra Nath Pandey, Minister for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, said, “Currently we are going through challenging times which is impacting all of us. I am thankful to P. Prakash, IPS, DIG, nodal officer at Kerala, who accepted our offer to manufacture masks and expressed his gratefulness to our ministry. We are honored to perform our part and join others in the movement of helping India fight the coronavirus pandemic.”

The Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship and NSTI (Women) Trivandrum is committed to helping the community and has offered the services of their dressmaking section, faculty and the trainees to work together for the noble cause. NSTI has taken on the responsibility to produce 25,000 double-layered masks for which Kerala police will be providing all the materials and support.

NSTIs and ITIs across the country have launched a number of initiatives to help in the fight against the spread of the virus. There are totally 15,697 ITIs, with 3,055 in Government Sector and 12,642 in Private Sector. The initiatives include a collective contribution of more than Rs1.6 crore to the PM Care fund as well as supply of food and other essential material to those who need it the most. NSTI and ITI campuses have been offered to Ministry of Health and Family Welfare to be converted to isolation centers for people that need to be quarantined, or into shelters for migrant laborers and people in need. Nationally, the NSTIs and ITIs have manufactured as many as 1.02 lakh masks for use by the general public. Additionally, 101 Jan Shikshan Sansthans (JSS) spread across 99 districts in 17 States have produced about 5 lakh masks so far for their respective District Administrations during this lockdown period.

Several initiatives are being carried on to curb the coronavirus pandemic. So far, the virus has been the cause of death for 426 people and affected over 12,760 people nationally.