Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1479191
24 PCB007 MAGAZINE I SEPTEMBER 2022 titions as we continue to build an electronics community in India. Part of those community-building efforts included signing a memorandum of under- standing (MoU) with the Vidya Vikash Institute of Engineering & Technology in Mysore. is MoU ensures that diploma students take IPC's Electronics Assembly for Operators training as part of a new course the Institute has devel- oped to expose students to more hands-on work with electronics. Because this initiative helps to develop a future pipeline of workers, it is actively supported by several Mysore-area EMS and PCB companies which are provid- ing internship opportunities to these students to better round out their experience. e stu- dents will start the course in a few weeks and wrap up in November. We plan to share the results of the evaluation with Dr. C. N. Ash- wath Narayan, the minister of Higher Educa- tion, Science & Technology, and skill develop- ment for the State Government of Karnataka, and his team. Dr. Narayan was the chief guest at the IEMI 2022 event in Bangalore. Other highlights of IEMI included encour- aging attendees to become more involved in the creation and adoption of global standards and workforce development ("skilling" and "re-skilling") programs such as the govern- ment of India's "Make in India" and "Skill India," along with updates on the importance of IPC-CFX as the definitive data protocol standard for Industry 4.0 success. My visit to India and attendance at IEMI illustrated how eager IPC is to support an elec- tronics community that embraces the idea that big problems can be solved when trade asso- ciations, training content providers, academic institutions, local industry, and government collaborate in an influential hub for electron- ics manufacturing. I'd like to strongly encour- age India's industry leaders to step up and volunteer their time to engage in critical activities around standards, education, advo- cacy, and solutions that will benefit the entire value chain. For additional information on IPC's activi- ties in India, contact Gaurab Majumdar, IPC India executive director, at GaurabMajum- dar@ipc.org. PCB007 Dr. John Mitchell is president and CEO of IPC. To read past columns, click here. During the inaugural session in New Delhi, John Mitchell participated in lighting the Nachiarkoil lamp, a symbol of how darkness will always be overcome by light and knowledge will overcome ignorance. John Mitchell presents a bouquet of flowers to Dr. C.N. Ashwath Narayan, the Chief Guest at the IEMI event in Bengaluru.