Shimla: The Himachal Pradesh higher education department on Thursday signed an MoU with the Board of Apprenticeship Training (Northern Region), Kanpur, to introduce apprenticeship-embedded degree programmes (AEDPs) in 16 govt degree colleges from the 2026-27 academic session.Education minister Rohit Thakur said the initiative would bridge the gap between classroom learning and industry needs by combining undergraduate education with workplace experience. Students enrolled in AEDPs will undergo at least six months of industry apprenticeship and receive a guaranteed stipend of Rs 10,900 per month.The first phase includes BCom programmes in banking, financial services and insurance (BFSI), retail operations management and logistics.As many as 685 students have enrolled in these courses across the 16 colleges. The minister said the programme would particularly benefit rural and economically weaker students by improving their skills and employment prospects.The govt is also considering expanding AEDPs to BA and BSc streams and extending BVoc programmes to more colleges, he added.
