ITI Charge Breakdown: State Fees, Concessions, and Scholarships

Fees at a government Industrial Training Institute (ITI) are low by design: most trainees pay somewhere between a few hundred and a few thousand rupees a year, with the exact amount set by the state, the trade group, and the trainee’s social category. Private ITIs charge far more, often tens of thousands of rupees a year. The sections below break down what the charges cover, what different states actually bill, and the exemptions and scholarships that can reduce or eliminate the cost.

What ITI Fees Are Made Of

ITI charges are rarely a single lump sum. A typical fee sheet splits the bill into several components, and knowing what each one is makes any state’s schedule easier to read.

Registration fee: a one-time charge paid when you apply. Delhi charges Rs. 200 for all candidates; West Bengal charges Rs. 30, or Rs. 15 for Kanyashree candidates.¹²
Admission fee: a separate one-time enrollment charge in some states. West Bengal’s government ITIs charge Rs. 100.²
Tuition fee: the recurring charge for instruction, usually set monthly and collected annually or half-yearly. Delhi charges Rs. 100 a month for engineering trades and Rs. 75 a month for non-engineering trades. West Bengal charges Rs. 30 a month.¹²
Non-tuition fee: an institutional charge billed to categories that are exempt from tuition. In Delhi, SC/ST boys pay no tuition but still pay a non-tuition fee of Rs. 100 a month for engineering trades.¹
Annual fund fee: a yearly contribution to institutional funds, Rs. 200 in Delhi.¹
Caution money: a refundable security deposit. Delhi charges Rs. 500; West Bengal charges Rs. 100.¹²

Some states tack on smaller charges for identity cards, library access, internet, and cultural activities. Maharashtra’s government ITIs collect roughly Rs. 350 a year in such add-ons.³

What You Actually Pay by State

Delhi

Delhi’s charges split by trade type and category. In engineering trades, general-category boys pay Rs. 1,900 at admission and Rs. 1,200 at the half-yearly point. SC/ST boys pay Rs. 1,300 and Rs. 600. Girls, physically handicapped trainees, and inmates of licensed orphanages pay Rs. 700 at admission with nothing due at the half-year. Non-engineering trades run slightly lower: Rs. 1,600 plus Rs. 900 for general-category boys, Rs. 1,150 plus Rs. 450 for SC/ST boys, and Rs. 700 at admission for exempt categories.¹

West Bengal

West Bengal is among the cheapest. A general candidate pays about Rs. 410 at admission (six months of tuition plus admission, registration, and caution money), with Rs. 180 due every six months after that for ongoing tuition.²

Maharashtra

Maharashtra sets annual training fees by trade group: Rs. 1,200 for machine-group engineering trades, Rs. 1,000 for non-machine engineering trades, and Rs. 800 for non-engineering trades. A Rs. 500 training deposit and a Rs. 100 library deposit are collected at admission.³

Private ITI Fees

Private ITIs charge in a completely different range. Maharashtra’s published rates for private ITI machine-group engineering trades are Rs. 30,000 for institute management committee seats, Rs. 45,000 for open-merit seats, and Rs. 60,000 for NRI seats. Non-machine engineering and non-engineering trades sit lower than that but still well above government levels.³

Hostel Charges

Hostel costs are separate from course fees. In Delhi, fixed hostel charges for a six-month period come to Rs. 2,000 — Rs. 1,500 room rent, Rs. 300 for electricity and water, and Rs. 200 for services and maintenance. A refundable hostel security deposit of Rs. 1,000 and a furniture security deposit of Rs. 400 are also collected, and mess charges are billed on actual use with a two-month advance of Rs. 1,500.⁴ Maharashtra charges Rs. 1,200 a year with a Rs. 1,000 deposit.³ Odisha’s standard hostel rate has been Rs. 125 a month.⁵

Who Pays Less: Category Exemptions

Government ITIs build large exemptions into their fee structures. In Delhi, girls, physically handicapped trainees, and inmates of orphanages licensed by the Social Welfare Department are exempt from all government-component fees. They pay only the Rs. 200 annual fund fee and the refundable Rs. 500 caution money. SC/ST boys are exempt from tuition but still pay the non-tuition fee at the same monthly rate.¹

In Maharashtra, trainees from SC, ST, NT, OBC, SBC, Minority, and economically backward Open Category families with annual income under Rs. 8 lakh qualify for a tuition fee concession at Rs. 500 a month.³

Scholarships That Cover ITI Fees

Central scholarship schemes can cover most or all of what a trainee owes. The Post-Matric Scholarship for OBCs, run by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, treats ITI courses as Group D (post-matriculation non-degree courses with a Class X entry requirement). Families earning up to Rs. 1 lakh a year are eligible, and applications go through each state’s Department of Social Welfare.⁶

The Ministry of Tribal Affairs runs a parallel Post-Matric Scholarship for Scheduled Tribe students. It covers compulsory, non-refundable fees including tuition, plus a maintenance allowance, for families earning up to Rs. 2 lakh a year. Security deposits and other refundable fees are not covered.⁷

Separately, the Pradhan Mantri National Apprenticeship Promotion Scheme (PM-NAPS), part of the restructured Skill India Programme with an outlay of Rs. 8,800 crore through 2026, pays ITI graduates and other apprentices 25% of their stipend during on-the-job training, up to Rs. 1,500 a month, deposited directly to the apprentice.⁸

Getting Your Caution Money Back

Caution money is the one component you can recover. In Delhi, the refund is available only after you successfully complete the course, and you have to claim it within three years of completion. Miss that window and the deposit is forfeited. No other fee is refundable.¹

Payment Deadlines and Late Fees

Falling behind on fees has teeth. At Government ITI Canning I in West Bengal, fees are due by the 30th of the current month. Pay later and a late fine of 5% of the monthly tuition applies. If you still haven’t paid by the 10th of the following month, you cannot sit for that month’s trade test. Missing two consecutive monthly trade tests cancels your enrollment, which ends your training and bars you from the All India Trade Test (AITT). Trainees can also be billed for damage to tools and equipment, and principals have authority to impose disciplinary fines for misconduct in or outside the institute.⁹

1
Government of NCT of Delhi. Registration Fee, Caution Money, and Tuition Fee
2
Directorate of Industrial Training, West Bengal. Admission Fee
3
DVET Maharashtra. Craftsman Training Scheme
4
Directorate of Training and Technical Education, Delhi. Hostel Fee
5
Times of India. Odisha Govt Waives Hostel Fees of ITI Students for Nine Months
6
Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment. Post-Matric Scholarship for OBCs
7
Ministry of Tribal Affairs. Post-Matric Scholarship for ST Students
8
Prime Minister’s Office. Cabinet Approves Continuation and Restructuring of Skill India Programme
9
Government ITI Canning I. Rules and Regulations