Recipe for success: Youth from weaker sections get free training in cooking

A Sugary syrup bubbles on the burner as we enter one of the kitchens at the Chandigarh Institute of Hotel Management (CIHM) in Sector 42.

A Sugary syrup bubbles on the burner as we enter one of the kitchens at the Chandigarh Institute of Hotel Management (CIHM) in Sector 42. Theres a special class on,not just because the gulab jamuns have emerged perfectly round,but for the students in it. Dressed smartly in uniforms,a tad different from the ones sported by the institutes regular batch,these 18 students,part of a special group from the economically weaker sections,have learnt everything,from preparing sweets to salads and Chinese to Continental.

Another batch of 20 such students is learning the art of cooking at the neighbouring Dr Ambedkar Institute of Hotel Management,Catering and Nutrition. All this for no fee. In fact,students will get a stipend of Rs 2,000 each at the end of the eight-week programme.

The students are studying under the Hunar Se Rojgar programme initiated by the Ministry of Tourism under its Skills Development Programme to develop employable skills for the hospitality sector. The programme has started simultaneously across the country in the IHMs and food craft institutes,including ours, says Naveen Kumar Nanchahal,principal of Dr Ambedkar Institute of Hotel Management,Catering and Nutrition.

Under the special initiative,youth from the weaker sections of the society,who are interested in joining the hospitality industry,have been chosen in the programme that specialises in food production. This is our first batch and we intend to train four batches by March 2010, says CIHM principal T K Razdan.

Apart from getting the training for free,these students,aged between 18 and 25 years,get the uniforms (specially designed in collaboration with the Ministry of Textiles) too at no cost. Books,course material and a professional knife set are also provided to them at no charges.

Little surprise then that the initiative has brought in an overwhelming response. We had as many as 70 applications,so we divided them into two batches, says Vishal Kalia,senior faculty member .

Seen as a brainchild of Union Tourism Minister Kumari Selja,who recently pointed out a need of as many as over a two lakh skilled people in hospitality every year,the programme has also been rolled out in view of the upcoming Commonwealth Games 2010. The course module is very intensive and each of these students have to put in 35 academic hours in a week.

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And the students,an enthusiastic bunch,are surely making the most of it. I have been passionate about cooking but could not have thought of learning it at such a professional level, says Surinder Kaur. For Gaurav Chhabra,the exposure to international cuisine,he hopes,will help in pursuing a career as a professional chef. More than the recipes,we have been taught about hygiene,personality development and entrepreneurial skills, he lists.

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cooking