President Murmu inaugurates IGNOU regional and skill centre in Odisha’s Rairangpur

President of India Droupadi Murmu today virtually inaugurated a new Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) regional centre and skill centre at Rairangpur in Odisha’s Mayurbhanj district. The initiative, in a predominantly tribal region, aims to bring higher education, skill development, and livelihood opportunities closer to local communities.

The centre will offer programmes in agriculture, food processing, tourism, hospitality, retail, IT and IT-enabled services, and entrepreneurship, aimed at creating sustainable careers and supporting local enterprise development.

The IGNOU regional centre at Rairangpur is expected to serve as a key hub for northern Odisha by strengthening employability through skill-oriented education and training support.

The event was held in the presence of union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan and Jayant Chaudhary, minister of state for skill development and entrepreneurship.

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Focus on AI skilling and future-ready workforce

The programme, organised by the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE), reflected the government’s push to prepare India’s workforce for an AI-driven future.

During the event, President Murmu conferred artificial intelligence certificates on learners, including students and members of parliament, and launched the national awareness campaign #SkillTheNation challenge to encourage youth participation in future-ready skilling programmes. A special “AI for Beginners” session was also conducted at Rashtrapati Bhavan in collaboration with Google.

Addressing the gathering, Dharmendra Pradhan said India would host an AI impact conference this year and stressed the importance of integrating AI effectively into the education system.

President Murmu underlined that the growing impact of AI across sectors makes AI literacy essential, noting that Indian schools are increasingly promoting AI learning through dedicated labs and structured modules to equip students with future-ready skills.