ITC expands PwD skilling programme across 7 cities, to create over 2,300 jobs

ITC Limited is expanding its skilling initiative for persons with disabilities (PwDs) across multiple Indian cities and helping over 2,300 differently-abled youth secure formal employment opportunities.

The programme has now expanded to seven cities including Bengaluru, Mysuru, Lucknow, Howrah, Kolkata, Pune and Bhubaneswar through eight centres operated in partnership with organisations such as Youth4Jobs, Anudip Foundation, Cheshire Disability Trust, Sarthak Educational Trust and Dr. Reddy’s Foundation.

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Over 2,370 differently-abled youth have been trained under the initiative in less than four years, with women accounting for over 30% of the participants. Trainees have secured employment across sectors including retail, hospitality, logistics, IT-enabled services, customer support and back-office operations, the company said.

Among the beneficiaries is 33-year-old Kavali Jyothi from Andhra Pradesh’s Anantapur district, who lives with 65% locomotor disability. After years of limited employment opportunities due to mobility constraints, she now works as a Customer Support Associate at Kempegowda International Airport in Bengaluru, earning Rs 16,000 per month.

Similarly, Jayram Ramesh Sonune, a visually impaired youth from Pune district’s Shikrapur village, secured employment at Pune Airport after receiving training in computer proficiency, workplace communication and professional readiness. He now earns Rs 25,000 per month. In Uttar Pradesh’s Barabanki, Sunil Kumar, who has 90% locomotor disability, works as an accountant earning Rs 15,000 per month.

The programme focuses on industry-relevant training and workplace preparedness, covering spoken English, financial literacy, digital literacy and soft skills. It also provides mentorship and sign-language interpretation support wherever required.

The initiative comes at a time when employment opportunities for persons with disabilities remain limited in India, especially in rural regions. According to estimates cited by the company, nearly 69% of persons with disabilities live in rural India, while literacy levels among the specially-abled stand at 54.4%. Employment participation also remains low, with only one in four PwDs engaged in employment.

Commenting on the initiative, Prabhakar Lingareddy, Executive Vice President and Head – Social Investments at ITC Limited, said the programme aims to nurture dignity and self-belief among differently-abled individuals while enabling long-term social and economic inclusion.

The company has also introduced specialised interventions such as the Mangaldeep Sixth Sense programme for visually challenged individuals. Launched in December 2021, the initiative trains participants in fragrance evaluation by leveraging enhanced olfactory abilities and has already covered 210 individuals across five cities.

ITC said its overall vocational skilling programme has so far reached nearly 1.45 lakh youth across India, reflecting a broader industry push towards inclusive workforce participation.