In the times when retrenchments are a daily routine, HCL Technologies has found a way to catch the tech-loving teenagers very young. Under the “TechBee” programme that it is testing in Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh, the firm conducts an entrance test for those completed Plus 2 or Intermediate course and gives them a year’s training to make them employable.

Hired in entry-level jobs at the company after the programme, they will get a seat in a graduation programme, which will again be funded or supported by the company.

After the successful pilots, the firm is planning to expand the programme to the cities where HCL Tech has presence.

Srimathi Shivashankar, Executive Vice-President, HCL Technologies, said the candidates will get a stipend of ₹10,000 a month in the first year.

“They undergo extensive 12 months of training to become IT engineers. While working at HCL, they can enrol in higher education programmes offered by reputed universities such as BITS Pilani and SASTRA University,” she said.

She was in Hyderabad to roll out the programme for students in Telangana. Students who have completed Intermediate in 2018 or 2019 with more than 60 per cent marks are eligible for the programme.

The students, however, will have to a pay fee of ₹2 lakhs to join the programme. The firm would facilitate a bank loan, which can be repaid in EMIs after they are absorbed into the company.

So far about 700 candidates completed the course and were absorbed into the company.

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