Patna, March 25: The government will open one Industrial Training Institute (ITI) in each block, one polytechnic institute in every district and one engineering college at every divisional headquarter so that students can acquire the best technical knowledge, said deputy chief minister Sushil Kumar Modi while inaugurating a two-day job-cum-counselling fair on the premises of ITI, Digha, today.

Modi also declared the decision to hike the cash award given to ITI students.

“The state government has decided to hike the cash prize to students placed first, second and third at the institutes to Rs 25,000, Rs 15,000 and Rs 10,000 respectively,” he said.

Binay Kumar, an ITI student, said: “We are fortunate that the government has raised the cash reward. Earlier, we had very limited options but after the initiative taken by the state government, we can now think from a broader perspective.”

At present, over 16,000 students are studying in different ITIs in the state, Modi said.