Berhampur: Teenage inmates of government-run observation home in this south Odisha town are being imparted vocational training on how to make handicraft products using straw.
Around 40 of 77 inmates of the juvenile home are being trained in two batches by State Institute for Development of Arts and Crafts (SIDAC), an institute under department of handlooms, textiles and handicrafts.
The inmates were selected for the programme on the basis of their keenness to undergo training, said caretaker of the programme K P Pati.
The training programme got underway recently. At least two instructors of SIDAC are on the job.
"Besides training, the institute will also provide all necessary equipment and other materials to the inmates during the six-month training period," said Superintendent of the home Sanjay Kumar Mohanty.
He said the aim of the training is to help the children return to mainstream and lead a normal life after their release from the home. "During the training, stress will be laid on helping them overcome negative emotions like aggression and anxiety," he added.
A six-month vocational training on terracotta by the SIDAC is on for last four months at the home. The training is likely to be extended by another six months to hone the inmates' skills, Mohanty said.
The handicraft products of the inmates would be marketed though handcraft exhibitions as demand for such products is high, he added. One can become self-reliant by making and selling the handicraft products, Pati added.
Officials of the SIDAC and the juvenile home and superintendent, Berhampur Circle Jail, Ram Chandra Nayak underlined the benefits of the vocational training, particularly in handicraft products, at a meeting on the home premises recently.
Some of the inmates are also pursuing studies in National Institute of Open Schooling and Indira Gandhi National Open University, home sources said.