The infrastructure building and real estate sectors have boomed to emerge as the second largest job providers in India. And the good thing about these sectors is that they are seeking out job hunters at all levels — be it an architect or a plumber — and paying them handsome remunerations. Even newage careers like construction management are seeing a happy demand here. Avenues tells you more about this happening sector and how you can get into it
With real estate and infrastructure expansion reaching its peak despite a sluggish global economy, the need for skilled hands in many sectors related to this fast growing field is being increasingly felt.
Besides metros, small-town India is seeing a boom in housing construction with many old and new builders focusing on pan-India consumer which is powered by the middle and lower middle class. Not just housing but also commercial establishments, food courts and cinema hall complexes are coming up across the nation. Data suggests that the real estate sector and infrastructure sectors have become second largest job sectors with skills being sought at every level of manpower.
Be it civil engineers who are on top of the list of the employment index of this sector or architects, structural engineers and specialist town planners needed for detailed housing, urban, environmental, transport or safety planning — the demand is exceeding supply for now.
The support staff too is a crucial area of recruitment. Property assessors, who make initial assessments of money to be paid to landowners and how space needs to be priced for a housing or commercial project are considered vital for any kinds of plans a builder may be having. These assessors study issues like the future growth prospects of the area, the neighbourhood quality and ease of transportation. His assessment is also used as the barometer for tax payments insurance. Once the project comes up or the builder is in deals to acquire land, he needs legal advisors. Quick legal verification of the land to be acquired, so as to avoid any court battles later, is a job entrusted to this community.
Next come, the project managers who need a degree in construction management, a comparitively new and specialised field of study. Earlier, construction management formed just one paper in the civil engineering course but now it is a stand-alone degree course. Not just engineers, but also plumbers, electricians, carpenters, brick layers and mason can make a killing for themselves in any project. Once the construction begins, the need for facility manager springs up. Their job is to ensure that the project goes on smoothly. Courses, degrees and diplomas are available at most universities or private institutes and vocational centres for all, starting from electricians for whom a short diploma will do. Alternatively, they can sit for a Government test in order to become a Government certified electrician. These courses are run my Industrial Training Institutes which are there in even the remotest part of the country. For construction managers, a crop of management courses have sprung up at private institutes as well as Government colleges. legal advisors need a law degree and have been flocking to this sector from lawyer and advocate ranks.
Degree providers: Foundation for the Economic Rehabilitation of Rural Youth (FERRY) offers courses for electricians and carpenters.
land Surveryors (Science & Maths till Class XII must) can study at the Survey Training Institute, Uppal, Hyderabad (www.soisti.gov.in), AP Survey Training Academy, Survey Bhavan, Hyderabad; Council of Architecture, New Delhi.
Postgraduate town planning courses at Bengal Engineering College, Kolkata, IIT Kharagpur, IIT Roorkee, University of Calcutta, Institute of Town Planners, New Delhi. The eligibility is B.Arch., B.E./B.Tech. (civil)/B.Plan. or M.Sc./M.A. in geography, sociology or economics or a PG diploma in town planning with minimum one-year work experience. The selection is by an associateship exam.
National Institute of Construction Management and Research, (NICMAR) in Pune is a leading institute to study Construction Management. Other than NICMAR, Centre for Environmental Planning and Technology, Ahmedabad, School of Planning and Architecture, New Delhi, Delhi Productivity Council, Delhi, and IIT Delhi and Chennai offer PG courses in construction management. Eligibility in most of these institutes is a degree or a diploma in engineering though M.Com. degree holders and chartered accountants can also apply in some institutes.
legal advisors: National law School of India University, Bangalore; West Bengal National University of Juridical Sciences, Kolkata; NAlSAR, University of law, Hyderabad; Symbiosis law College, Pune.