"I was working as a driver and felt that I should know the details of a car." Vivekanand begins his story as we interact with him at Pratham Institute's vocational training centre in Odisha's Sonepur district. This centre offers training in the automobile vertical, and youth from Boudh and Sonepur districts enrol themselves for better job opportunities, and a better future ahead. Vivekanand is also one of them. He lives in Patrapali village in the Sonepur district.




Both these districts are economically backward, and the reason for this is low literacy and a lack of opportunities in the secondary and tertiary sector. The people here speak Odiya, but many of them also converse in Sambalpuri, a dialect of Odiya. A large population in these districts indulges in small-scale farming or daily wage labour.

"I used to drive a truck before, and my driving assignments took me to different places. I also went to Chhattisgarh once", he says. But that became tiring, and he took to driving cars. That is when he felt that he should know the inner details of the vehicle, and the same brought him to the centre. "The lectures here are motivating, and my confidence has increased", he begins. "It made me realise that I can do many things after completing this course," Vivekanand says that the lecture and the practical applications have made him explore the possibility of starting a garage. "There is no garage in the entire Ulunda block where I live, and I want to fill this gap."

However, the stint at the centre has also made him aware of the opportunities that lie outside his district. It is incredible, he says, that I drove to many places, but this course made me realise that there are opportunities everywhere, and more in cities. "...and that is why I want to work in a big city. Bhubaneshwar is a good option. But my dream city is Delhi", he says with a confident smile on his face. Vivekanand is a regular browser of the internet, and he spends many hours on his smartphone. And that is where he found out that Dubai is a place that has cars in plenty and of different designs. "Before I start my garage, I want to work in a big city, and I also want to visit Dubai", he says.

The course at the Sonepur centre has made Vivekanand aware that there are many unexplored opportunities around. It has made him prepare a check-list which is not only national but also global! We wish him all the best, and we are sure Vivekanand will achieve all that he aspires. 

Balanagamma hails from Lingasugur, a small town in Karnataka's Raichur district. She was searching for a job, and a job-fair brought her to Pratham Institute's hospitality training centre at Mysore. "I did not know anything about the Hotel industry. I came here with the hope of getting a job", she says.



Her father passed away, and the sole income for her house is the pension that her mother receives every month. Hence, Balanagamma's primary focus was to start earning money and contribute to the family income. But now she feels that she has gained something substantial from this course and feels that her decision to enrol here was the right one! "I had an initial worry, but the way of teaching cleared all my doubts. In fact, I know one a few things about the hotel industry", she says.

As we talk to her, she explains that apart from the work techniques taught here, there was an overall orientation of the hotel industry. Everyone from the batch was oriented about the industry, who are our customers, and how to behave with them, the importance of grooming, and how to communicate with others. All her batchmates realised that a Hotel is not merely a place to work; instead, it is a place where we serve our customers. "I was not aware of all this, and after the training, my social behaviour has changed", she says. "Initially, I spoke only to my family members. But now I can speak to everyone around me. My confidence has increased as well." She now likes the faculty members, their approach towards teaching and the overall discipline of the place. According to her, the training here is the reason everyone has become more organised. She also says that this place has given her new friends and the same would not have been possible at home.

Balanagamma is geared up to work in the Hotel industry but wishes to work at a location that is near to her house. "My mother lives alone, and I want to be close to her." She is eager to contribute to the family income and initiate a new beginning in life. With her first salary, Balanagamma wishes to perform a small ritual for the family, buy a dress for herself and a gift for her mother. We wish her all the best in her new beginning.

Tapas Kumar belongs to Taraikela village in Odisha's Sonepur district. He greets us with a smile and talks to us during our visit to Pratham Institute's automotive training centre at Sonepur. The training centre targets two backward districts of Odisha - Boudh and Sonepur. Both these districts are characterised by a population that is economically very poor and less literate as compared to other districts. Pratham is the only training centre here that provides training in automotive. Pratham has collaborated with Odisha Skill Development Authority where the infrastructure is provided by the latter, and the implementation is done by the former. 





Tapas's uncle works as a peon at an ITI near his village, and he recommended him Pratham's course. His uncle knew that Tapas loved cars and this course would give proper justice to his career. Since he was a child, Tapas had a keen interest in cars and watched them on television. "My favourite bike is Yamaha whereas I like BMW the most among cars. 

"But I did not like the course for the first 10 to 15 days. I felt I was learning only theory. But later my interests grew", he says. However, Tapas made new friends, and he liked chatting with them for long hours. "It was for the first time that I interacted with friends from other districts", he says. Tapas further mentions that his life was restricted to his village and hence he liked spending time at the centre. Practical training started soon, and then the entire batch began working with the numerous spare parts of vehicles. "It was a different feeling", he begins. "I had never imagined that I would do this job one day.  The joy of fitting a part to a car is difficult to explain."  

Tapas is happy as he feels that he has developed an identity. Moreover, the work and process learned here gives him immense joy. He likes to learn from friends and loves to witness that many of them have come from different background and places. After getting placed, he wishes to work in Haryana and Rajasthan as he has seen these places quite often on television. He belongs to a family of farmers, and he lives with three sisters, one brother, his parents and his grandfather. "What will you do with your first salary?" "I want to buy a saree for my mother, and I want to go on a tour with my family. I also want to take my grandfather as he is very old", he replies with a smile.   

18-year-old Shiv hails from Joda village in the Keonjhar district of Orissa, which is one of the country's 250 most backward districts. He belongs to a family of farmers, and his father owns a small piece of land where they cultivate rice. Shiv completed his 10th grade from the school in his village and for the next two years, he helped his family in farming but did not take an active interest in pursuing it further.

"Ours is a small piece of land, and we do not spend much time on the field ...we have to sit idle most of the time. However, I wanted to do something different", he says.

When he was in 10th grade, Shiv developed an interest towards working in a hotel. He recalls watching hotels on television serials and films. "Initially I did not know they were hotels. I just looked at them as huge buildings. But later I realised that they were hotels", he admits. He further stresses that he was impressed seeing the guests in these hotels and always wanted to talk them.



"However I was very shy. I was used to the quiet life in my village, and I had never travelled much", he recalls. Around the same time, he came to know of Pratham's hospitality program from an acquaintance in his village and decided to inform his father of his aspirations. After initial discussions, his father agreed, and Shiv enrolled himself as a student at Pratham's hospitality centre at Sheragada in Ganjam district.

Shiv chose to be a chef and thus joined the food production department. However, he took some time to overcome his shyness. "It was a slow transformation", he says. "I remained quiet for the first few days. But it was fascinating to witness many people like me, and most of them had a similar background. I started talking to them and slowly opened up", he recalls. "Now I can interact with many people."

But he gives credit to his teachers for this change. "The teachers here answer our questions, no matter how many times we ask them and this makes us feel that we are not asking anything wrong", he adds. He has learned a lot of new dishes. "I can boast about it when I go back to my village", he says with a smile.

When we ask him where he wants to work, he replies,"Mumbai or Delhi...as these cities have tall buildings and hotels...!" But after a pause, with a mischievous smile, he adds, " I also want to work in Dubai...I have heard many things about that place."

Apart from his dream of working in a hotel, Shiv has many plans for his family. From his first salary, he plans to buy new clothes for his parents and also spend some money on house repairs.