Course for armed forces planned across nation

After launching a certificate course in Business Administration for officers of the Indian Armed forces at the Indian Institute of Management-Ahmedabad (IIM-A), the Directorate-General of Resettlement, Ministry of Defence (DGR-MoD) is planning to launch the same in other IIM's including Bangalore and Kolkata as well as Xavier's Labour Relations Institute (XLRI), Jamshedpur.

"In our commitment to smoothen the transition for armed officers to civil life, we would like to collaborate with more institutes in the country. We are in advanced talks with IIM Bangalore and IIM Kolkata as well as XLRI, Jamshedpur to launch similar courses in the next few months, " said Major General Harwant Krishan, Directorate General Resettlement, Ministry of Defence.

The intake for the course at the proposed institutes is likely to be around 60 students and would be similar to the course and fee structure of the course in IIM-A which is a six-month, full-time residential programme. The fee is reported to be Rs 1,30,000 for each participant of which 60 per cent is borne by the DGR.

At the inauguration of the course at IIM-Ahmedabad, the 60 participants for the programme, of whom 50 per cent are from the army and 25 per cent each from the Navy and Air Force, talked of the course as being the best opportunity for them to put their skills to use in the corporate world.

"Before joining this course, more than 30-40 officers in this programme had received offers for posts like general manager and, personnel relation officers from top corporates but we decided to apply to the programme to learn about the corporate world and enhance our experience and academic profile, " said flight lieutenant Promila Dhaka, one of the course participants.

Reportedly, classes for the programme began a week back and the officers are getting their first insights into the corporate world.

"There are three classes a day and at least 7-8 hours of preparation required for the course, but the officers' are very regular in their work being used to working for gruelling hours, " said Pradyumana Khokle, one of the course co-ordinators.