Those fascinated by jewellery will soon have a chance to grasp the finer nuances of its design.

The Gem and Jewellery Export Promotion Council will sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Bhawanipur Gujarati Education Society college within 10 days.

According to the agreement, the council?s Mumbai-based institute ? Indian Institute of Gems and Jewellery (IIGJ) ? will grant a franchise to the college to run courses on various aspects of the jewellery trade. The certificates will bear the council?s name.

The franchise will enable the college to conduct courses on jewellery designing, identification and assortment of gems and goldsmithy. The courses are likely to start from the 2005 academic session, college officials said.

?Faced by a shortage of trained personnel at Manikanchan, the gem park in Salt Lake, the council?s Calcutta office had been trying to set up a training facility. They approached a number of colleges, including Bhawanipur, which readily accepted the proposal,? said Pankaj Parekh, council convener (eastern region).

In contrast to Mumbai ? where the IIGJ runs degree and diploma courses in 22 disciplines, including goldsmithy, diamond setting, gold refining and jewellery marketing ? Calcutta has no accredited institute for the subject.

?It?s unfortunate that despite West Bengal being a jewellery-manufacturing hub of the country, the city doesn?t have a standard institute for jewellery design,? Parekh added.

Around 20 per cent of the country?s 850-tonne annual gold import comes to the state for jewellery manufacture.

The market in the state is growing at a steady 15 per cent, with the annual turnover touching Rs 2,800 crore last year. Of the 100,000-odd artisans involved in the trade, 80 per cent are based in Calcutta.

To begin with, students at the Bhawanipur college will be imparted training in jewellery design. The college reserves the right to add other courses.

The college applied for the franchise in September, following which the council asked for a draft MoU, which was sent in October. The draft was reportedly approved on November 15.