Kingfisher to open 12 new training centres in the country

Mumbai, Dec 6 (UNI) Vijay Mallya-promoted Kingfisher Training Academy (KTA) will set up 12 new centres across the country as part of its two-phased expansion plan.

The new centres are to come up at Delhi, Chandigarh, Jaipur, Indore, Nagpur, Kolkata, Guwahati, Ahmedabad, Pune, Thane, Hyderabad and Bangalore by February next year.

Speaking to the media today, KTA Chief Mentor Rajesh Verma said, ''The way the aviation industry is expanding, it is expected that a workforce of around 10,000-15,000 will be required to meet the demand. Though there is no dearth of manpower, it is difficult to find the right candidates. So our objective is to provide quality manpower to the industry.'' Indian carriers have placed firm orders for approximately 100 wide-bodied aircraft and another 300 narrow-bodied aircraft worth billions of dollars in the next six years.

''With the industry projected to grow at an annual conservative rate of 23-27 per cent in the next five years, the dearth of skilled manpower is going to be a major concern,'' Mr Verma observed.

''In the second phase, we may also consider setting up centres in the SAARC countries and the Middle-East,'' he added.

''Our centres will not only groom the candidates for the aviation sector, but also other verticals of the service industry like hospitality, BPO and retail,'' Mr Verma informed.

UNI