Makeover mode: The Women’s Industrial Training Institute at Gariahat. Picture by Sanat Kumar Sinha

Recognising the need to plug the gap in skilled manpower for the construction industry, the state chapter of Credai has taken over the Women’s Industrial Training Institute (ITI) in Gariahat to upgrade courses and introduce more market-oriented streams.

“The mandate from the government is to transform the institute into a centre of excellence in construction and woodwork. We hope to exceed the mandate,” says Subhromoni Dey, the adviser (education and training) to Credai Bengal.

The umbrella body of realtors was among the first off the blocks to approach the state department of technical education for the single-storey Gariahat institute housed next to the bigger ITI campus, which was also being eyed by the likes of Reliance and Confederation of Indian Industry. Credai proposes to add at least three floors to the structure.

“The public-private partnership model is ideal for us to convert the ITIs into centres of excellence. We realise there’s a shortage of skilled manpower across the board and with that in sight, we hope to upgrade all the 51 institutes in the state over the next five years,” said H.P. Dey, the director (technical education and training) of the state government.

Nowhere is this crunch more acute than in the real estate sector, feels Pradip Chopra, the chairman of the Credai education committee. “Today, every developer has projects 20 times more than he had 10 years back, but the biggest roadblock in implementation is manpower. So much so that DLF had to call back 20,000 workers from Dubai for their Indian sites, giving them wage parity,” Chopra points out.

Credai will upgrade the courses at the Women’s ITI and make them more job-oriented, while adding programmes in areas like retail, hospitality, healthcare and civil aviation, where male students will be eligible as well.

The idea is to introduce more new-age teaching tools, in collaboration with manufacturers and suppliers, and also add evening modules, where working professionals can upgrade their skills in real estate marketing, advertising and management and facility management.

Credai Bengal proposes to add another Rs 2.5 crore by way of donation from members to the Rs 2.5-crore central grant for the institute, to shore up the start-up capital to Rs 5 crore. Plans are being drawn up to hold technical workshops with juvenile homes and slum-dwellers.