A group of veterans concluded their vocational training program on April 8, gaining skill certificates and governmental financial aid ranging from 60,000 to 160,000 yuan ($24,700).

The program enrolled 155 veterans decommissioned in the autumn and winter season of 2015. The training started in October. The curricula included numerical control lathe systems, electrical engineering, auto mechanics, computer related technologies, forklift operation, and Auto CAD software.

Eventually 135 of the 155 trainees passed the practical and theoretical exams and obtained certificates.

Ninety percent of the veterans who retired last autumn and winter have resettled into the economy. For the rest, the Taicang government organized a jobs fair where 55 participating enterprises offered 514 posts.

The local authorities have arranged for 1,400 retired soldiers to take such training projects since 2007, Taicang Daily reported.

By Liu Sitong and edited by Peter Nordlinger