By BW Hotelier

THE Ministry of Tourism, Government of India is setting up an Indian Culinary Institute (ICI) at Tirupathi with a Northern Regional Centre at Noida.
The institute will offer structured regular programs of study specific to culinary arts leading to graduate and post graduate level degrees. It will organise demand driven certificate and Diploma courses, document and create data bases of specific Indian cuisines, commission studies and surveys of Indian traditional cuisines as well provide trained manpower support to existing IHMs and the Hotel Industry, according to information given by the Union Minister of State for Tourism, Dr Mahesh Sharma in the Rajya Sabha.
The academic calendar of the ICI will include the regular programmes such as B.Sc. in Culinary Arts and Sciences, M.Sc. in Culinary Arts; Diploma in Food & Beverage Service Management; Short term skill/knowledge upgradation programmes and Skill & Competency Certification for practicing chefs, the Minister added.
A technical committee is being constituted, with academic and industry experts to plan and design course structure basic and advance culinary studies. An international collaboration is also being explored, according to Dr Sharma.