Creamy future in the skies

• Q: I am 19 years old and I love to fly. I read everywhere that the aviation industry is facing a shortage of commercial pilots. Am I too young to become a pilot?

Selja George

• A: No, you are not. The civil aviation sector faces an acute shortage of pilots, which is leading private airlines like Jet Airways and Kingfisher to recruit expatriate pilots who make up 30 to 40 per cent of their crew now.

Flying schools minus sufficient equipment and instructors, co-pilots who are younger than 20 years and the large number of foreign pilots — many of whom are unfamiliar with the local topography and climate — are symptoms of this skills shortage. In order to attract people to this sector, salaries have shot up to Rs 2.5 to Rs 3 lakh a month for an Indian pilot while an expatriate pilot gets paid up to Rs 5 lakh. The Indian aviation sector needs at least 4,000 more pilots over the next five years.

The government has also lowered recruitment standards for commercial pilots. Current rules allow a person to become a co-pilot, who stands in for the pilot, after six months of obtaining a Commercial Pilots’ Licence (CPL). This means that many private airlines have co-pilots who are below the age of 20 years. Directorate General of Civil Aviation rules don’t permit two 60-year-olds inside the cockpit but they are fine with a 19-year-old and a 60-year old!

As it takes two years to train a pilot in India (while in the US, Australia and the Philippines, a licence can be obtained in six months), a few Indian academies have started collaborating with foreign flying schools so that they can cut down sharply on training time and churn out pilots for domestic carriers with greater frequency.

For information on aviation, you may write to the Indira Gandhi Rashtriya Uran Akademi, Fursatganj Airfield, Rae Bareli-229302 and the West Bengal Flying Training Institute, Behala, Calcutta-700060.

A level playing field for women

• Q: I am interested in working in the retail industry. Is it a good area for women?

Name withheld

• A: You can definitely work in the retail sector. In fact, the retail sector is poised to emerge as the largest employer of women in the country. Industry estimates suggest that women constitute 30 per cent of the total sales force on the shop floor and their number is rising fast with the expansion of existing players and new entrants. This is because retail majors are offering them a level playing field as far as jobs are concerned. In certain categories like household products, grocery and garments, women turn out to be better marketers compared to their male counterparts.

The lack of trained and qualified people is a major challenge for this industry. This means you have a bright future in this industry, particularly since you are interested in it.

Learn about all dimensions of education

• Q: Could you please tell me something about the new MA programme in education offered by IGNOU?

Sabena Guha

• A: Indira Gandhi National Open University’s (IGNOU) master of arts in education programme is not the same as an MEd. However, it is an innovative programme that provides a wide and comprehensive understanding of education.

The course will help you to acquire a higher level of specialisation in areas such as higher education, distance education, educational technology and educational management. Its objective is to produce well-trained professionals who are knowledgeable in education and its various dimensions and are equipped for participation in educational discourse.

The total number of credits offered is 68. You must cover 34 credits each year. The dissertation work in the second year carries 10 credits. Applicants should have a bachelors degree (in any discipline). A student can complete the programme in a minimum of two years and in a maximum of five years. The medium of instruction is English. One has to pay Rs 10,000 for the entire programme (in one instalment).

The multimedia instructional mode combines self-instructional print material, audio / video components, assignments, counselling sessions, teleconferencing, interactive radio counselling and dissertation work.

IGNOU’s School of Education also offers a PhD course in education, a masters course in distance education, a bachelors course in education, a postgraduate diploma course in distance education, a postgraduate diploma course in higher education, a postgraduate certificate course in the professional development of teachers, a postgraduate diploma course in school leadership and management, a diploma course in primary education, a certificate course in primary education and a certificate course in elementary teacher education.

IGNOU is also developing an MPhil course in education, a postgraduate diploma course in educational technology and a postgraduate diploma course in educational management and administration. The application form and detailed information can be obtained by visiting www.ignou. ac.in. The application deadline is November 15.