Event: The Indian Technical Economic Cooperation (ITEC) day was observed at the Indian embassy in Thimphu, yesterday.

Under the ITEC and the Technical Cooperation Scheme of the Colombo Plan, more than a thousand Bhutanese,from the government and corporate and private sectors, have received technical training in the past four years, an Embassy of India press release states.

ITEC day is an occasion to bring together Bhutanese alumni once a year so that they can share their experiences and knowledge acquired during their training in India.

Education minister Norbu Wangchuk attended the event as chief guest. More than 300 guests, including ITEC alumni, attended the function.

“The knowledge and experience gained through the various training programmes offer under ITEC would enable India to further share its experience with Bhutanese nationals and help enhance their human resources in a more innovative and effective manner,” the press release states.

Apart from making available more than 280 training courses in 47 institutions in India, the programme also deputes Indian experts abroad, and covers aid for disaster relief, gifting of equipment, study tours, and feasibility studies or consultancy services.

ITEC is a demand-driven programme.  Therefore, assistance offered under ITEC is usually in response to requests received from friendly countries and the commitments made by India’s political leadership, states the press release.

The ITEC programme was established in 1964 and focuses on sharing of experience, transfer to technology and capacity building. It is an important component of India’s development cooperation and assistance efforts.

Staff reporter