Himachal Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur on Wednesday laid the foundation stone of Centre of Excellence for Tourism and Hospitality and Information Technology to be constructed at a cost of Rs 85 crore in Gram Panchayat Chausha near Waknaghat in Solan district.
The Chief Minister said that this Centre would provide a sound and trained manpower to the tourism and hospitality industry.
He said that this Centre of Excellence would have an Information Technology Centre, Centre of Excellence for tourism and Hospitality, Training Hotel, Teaching Staff Residence, Students Hostel, Staff Quarters and Directors Residence.
The Centre would produce some of the best trained youth as per the demand of the industry, he said.
The institute would meet the demand of highest IT Skills such as analytics, robotics and artificial intelligence etc. It would also provide incubation hub services to the new entrepreneurs of the state, he said. The Chief Minister said that the Coronavirus pandemic has forced the state to take a few strict decisions to check the spread of the virus. At the same time, the government is also ensuring that the pace of development goes uninterrupted therefore; foundation stones and inaugurations of projects were being done virtually, he said.
Thakur further said that the State Government is also endeavouring to develop this whole area from tourism point of view. Several companies have shown their interest for being the Operating Partner of this Centre of Excellence. Seven international companies and 23 other organizations have envisaged interest in this sector, he added.
Speaking on the occasion, Technical Education and Information Technology Minister Ram Lal Markanda said that this Centre of Excellence for Tourism and Hospitality would be the fourth such Centre in the country and would be completed within 18 months. He said that this Centre would prove a boon to the youth of the state for their skill upgradation.