Karnataka to Deploy Trainers in 194 Atal Tinkering Labs

Karnataka will place dedicated trainers in 194 government school Atal Tinkering Labs under GTTC’s 10-month Empowering ATLs project to revive idle labs.

Karnataka will place dedicated trainers in 194 Atal Tinkering Labs (ATLs) run in government schools, in a bid to revive labs that have often sat underused for want of qualified instructors. The 10-month “Empowering ATLs” project will be implemented by the Government Tool Room and Training Centre (GTTC) with Samagra Shikshana-Karnataka, under an agreement signed with the state’s School Education Department, ETEducation reported on 3 November 2026.

What the Empowering ATLs project will do

GTTC will send trained instructors into the labs to teach creativity, technology, innovation and problem-solving, following the curriculum of the Atal Innovation Mission. The project covers:

Dedicated trainers for 194 government school ATLs across Karnataka
Better lab management, and materials to maintain lab equipment
Expert mentorship and hands-on STEM sessions for students
Preparation for hackathons and competitions
Industrial visits at district and cluster levels

The programme will begin next month and run into the next academic year. Each instructor will receive a fixed honorarium of ₹20,000 a month.

Why Karnataka’s tinkering labs need trainers

Atal Tinkering Labs are centrally funded. Each school receives an initial capital grant of ₹12 lakh to set up the lab, followed by annual maintenance funding. Equipment alone, however, does not guarantee use. Several labs in the state have remained underutilised because schools lack teachers trained to run them, and the new project is meant to close that gap.

“The centre would provide expert trainers as well as materials required for maintaining lab equipment and conducting training,” said Maruti Bhajantri, Principal, GTTC, Hubballi.

Deepak Kulkarni, Nodal Officer at DIET, Dharwad, said 21 ATLs in Dharwad district were already promoting student innovation through technical workshops and structured mentorship.

Part of a wider push for hands-on tech learning

The move adds a people layer to Karnataka’s school technology plans, which already include AI education from Class 6 under new school programmes. Other states are also investing in labs: Maharashtra recently sanctioned funds for smart classrooms and tinkering labs in 76 Marathwada model schools, Punjab opened its first AI lab in a government school at Khanna, and Chhattisgarh’s Jashpur district is bringing AI, coding and robotics into government classrooms.

The ATL network itself has grown steadily since NITI Aayog’s early drive to set up Atal Tinkering Labs in over 2,400 schools. Karnataka’s project shifts the focus from building labs to making sure students actually use them.