Praising Maharashtra for achieving maximum apprentice trainings as compared to other states, Union Skill Development Minister Rajiv Pratap Rudy emphasised that the current government is serious about skill development for increasing employability of youth. <br/><br/>He added that India has 18 lakh engineering seats across the country but as many as 10 lakh seats are still vacant and stressed that therefore, modernisation of ITIs is need of the hour. Mr. Rudy was speaking at the launch of Kaushalya Setu initiative by the Maharashtra Government in Mumbai today.<br/> <br/>Maharashtra Government today signed 22 MoUs with various industries which is likely to generate employment for as many as 7.5 lakh people state. The MoUs were signed in the presence of Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis. Commenting on the education system, the chief minister said that there is a huge gap between employment and skilled manpower. <br/><br/>The Kaushalya setu initiative will help bridge this gap and provide training to youth and assured that the state government will work in tandem with central government and implement youth centric policies. <br/> <br/>Speaking on the occasion Maharashtra Minister for Skill Development Sambhaji Patil Nilangekar said ITI modernisation is also one aspect the state has taken into consideration and therefore joined the ITI to other industries like marketing, service and retail. The state also plans to create roadmap and is also has a vision of creating an overall employment of 52 lakh in state.