For someone who designed and made a Formula One race car during his BTech final year, Nihar Panda sounds surprisingly down to earth. The aforementioned car was displayed at the Airtel 4G launch and served as the first major milestone in his life. He worked with John Deere, the American manufacturing company, for a year in Pune before taking up BTech at Centurion University of Technology and Management. After which, he, along with his friend Himanshu Panda, started Skyy Rider Institutions in 2011, which trains students so that they can go on to have stable careers in the automobile industry.
"There are certain institutes in Odisha like Centurion University of Technology and Management, ITER, CV Raman Global University and a few others who have labs and infrastructure that we need. So, we use their facilities and take sessions there. The colleges usually readily agree to open their doors to other students because they get revenue," explains the 29-year-old. Now, this wasn't as easy as it sounds because why would colleges let 29-year-olds take sessions in the first place? But with time, they have slowly built their confidence to the level that they are at now and they also train the college staff.
Nihar claims that by the end of a few sessions, the students who learn how to design a car can also manufacture and drive it by the end of their training. Students are even trained at Volkswagen and Ashok Leyland centres. Skyy Rider trains over 2,000 students yearly and many of their students have gone on to initiate start-ups of their own. And through their two-day workshops, they have trained as many as 10,000 students.
These courses (they offer more than 30 of them) are designed for BTech/BE, Diploma and ITI students who are inclined towards a career in the automobile industry, electrical vehicles, the power sector and so on. Think courses like Humanoid Robotics, Advanced Automotive Training and so many more. Students also have the chance to bag internships with big players in the automobile industry. Skyy Rider Institutions' motive is to stay up-to-date and ensure that their students are also on top of things. For example, they have already started training students about BSVI engines that are just gearing up to be launched in the market, shares the Dhenkanal-born.
They run over 20 industrial programme
Skyy Rider Institutions is spreading its wings far and wide. "We already have set up training centres in Hyderabad and Ludhiana. Next, we have our eyes set on New Delhi and Bengaluru," says Nihar ambitiously.
More of its courses:
- Associate diploma course in automotive designing and manufacturing
- Full-time postgraduation and diploma in automotive designing and manufacturing
- Associate diploma course in automotive systems and technology
For more on them, check out skyyriderinstitutions.com
