Oct. 19: Acting on the recommendation of the National Accreditation Assessment Council (NAAC), the entrepreneurship development cell of Cotton College has decided to start a short-term course in screen printing from December.

The entrepreneurship development cell or the Faraday Bicentenary Science Park, set up in March 2003, has conducted a number of entrepreneurship awareness programmes for students.

Chief project co-ordinator of the cell, Satyendra Kumar Choudhury, said the NAAC committee had after its assessment suggested that they begin a certificate course in screen printing. Acting on the suggestion, they decided to start a short-term course, which would be developed into a full-time certificate course later, he said.

?When we set up the cell, we had thought of starting a certificate course in screen printing. However, since we did not have the faculty and computers, we decided to go in for short training programmes,? he said.

The cell had earlier organised a weeklong entrepreneurship development training programme on screen printing in association with the Smallscale Industries Service Institute.

Twenty-six students from Cotton College and Nalbari College completed the training.

During the training period, the cell acquired facilities for screen printing and a full-fledged unit for screen printing was set up. A few trained students of the post-graduate level of Cotton College use the unit to upgrade the skills of printing.

Choudhury pointed out that though the infrastructure for a certificate course was now in place, it could not be started as the cell would have to begin with a short-term course before introducing the certificate course.

Resource persons at the cell will train the students for the short-term course. Choudhury said a few post-graduate students, who had already been trained, would also assist the programme co-ordinator.

?In the first batch we will enrol 10 students, which will be increased after a year when we are fully equipped to train more students,? Choudhury said.

The duration of the course will be 45 days. ?We have not fixed any eligibility criteria for the course but Higher Secondary passed students will be given preference,? he added.

The cell also offers 30-hour short-term computer training on office automation, the basics of computers and Internet, for college students on a regular basis.

Four batches of students have already completed the course and appeared for the examination.

Choudhury said the main objective of the cell is to encourage science and technology graduates to pursue entrepreneurship as a vocation.