The Tamil Nadu Adi Dravidar Housing and Development Corporation (TAHDCO) has relaunched the International Air Transport Association (IATA) certification training programme for graduates from Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe communities to get job opportunities in domestic and international airlines.
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According to official sources, the TAHDCO launched this training programme, a decade ago, to train SC and ST graduates in a foundational course for clearing the certification test of IATA, an international association of airlines located in Montreal, Canada. The initiative was shelved for various reasons after a couple of years.
“Considering the objective of this initiative and international recognition for IATA certificates which would open up job opportunities for graduates worldwide, we decided to modify and relaunch this scheme starting this year. We have roped in M. Veerababu, a trainer, who is a beneficiary of this initiative in the first batch,” said K.S. Kandasamy, Managing Director, TAHDCO.
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Mr. Veerababu said over 350 graduates applied for this training programme after TAHDCO decided to relaunch it this year. Among them, 25 girls and 30 boys were shortlisted after an interview. They would be trained in courses such as Introduction to Air Cargo, Dangerous Goods Regulations, Passenger Ground Services, Reservation and Ticketing and Foundation in Travel and Tourism. After completing the training programme, the candidates must clear the IATA certification test.
The entire training programme including registration fee for the IATA test, book fee, food and accommodation charges would be funded by TAHDCO which would cost ₹1.25 lakh for each student, said Mr. Kandasamy.
He added that the TAHDCO had earmarked 10% of its total budget for conducting training programmes for students and graduates from SC and ST communities. He said ₹2.5 crore had been allotted for the IATA training programme which would be expanded by training more graduates in batches.