Snippets

IITTM to start new campus at Noida

The Indian Institute of Tourism & Travel Management (IITTM) is starting a new campus in Noida, Uttar Pradesh. Five acres of land has been allotted here and Rs 14.52 crore sanctioned by the ministry of tourism for the construction of the campus. IITTM, an autonomous organisation of ministry of tourism & culture, Government of India was established in 1983 and has entered into its Silver Jubilee Year.

The multi-campus institute has centers in Gwalior, Bhubaneswar and Goa. Minister of Tourism & Culture Ambika Soni laid the foundation stone of the new campus at Sector-62, Noida in January this year. IITTM has been involved with the field of education, training, research and consultancy in the travel and tourism sector. The institute has been designated as an international focal point of the Asia Pacific Educational and Training Institutes in Tourism (APETIT) with an objective of strengthening the quantitative and qualitative need for training, education and research in Asia-Pacific countries.

It offers both post-graduate and under-graduate programmes and also conducts a short-term Management Development Programme (MDP) on various aspects of tourism and travel apart from sponsored programmes for different states and central government and autonomous bodies. The government has decided to set up another centre of IITTM at Delhi/NCR.

Proposed courses to commence are: two-year postgraduate diploma in tourism and leisure Management Development Programmes (MDPs), Capacity Building for Service Provider (CBSP) and other short term programmes on tourism travel and allied sectors.

Marriott's cooking school introduces signature courses

The new cooking school at JW Marriott Phuket Resort & Spa, Ginja Cook, that started in September last year, will offer personalised signature courses from February 2007. During the first three months of operation, Ginja Cook offered traditional Thai cooking classes. It will now offer a variety of other cuisines including Japanese, Italian and Indian.

The personalised signature courses include: Ginja Cook for couples, for romance, for families, for juniors, for friends, for corporates, etc. Courses start from US$ 190 per person (plus tax and service).

Infosys BPO, HVS International to offer hospitality outsourcing solutions

Infosys BPO, the business process outsourcing subsidiary of Infosys Technologies, and HVS International, a New York-based consultancy offering valuation and other services to the hotel, restaurant, shared ownership, gaming, and leisure industries, have announced a strategic alliance to offer outsourcing solutions in the hospitality industry. The Infosys BPO-HVS global alliance will leverage HVS consulting expertise and market reach in the hospitality industry and the process outsourcing capabilities of Infosys BPO to develop and execute domain-specific, predictable, and process-centric solutions to improve productivity and optimise costs for companies.

Amitabh Chaudhry, CEO and managing director of Infosys BPO, said, "Infosys BPO has a strong portfolio of horizontal process outsourcing capabilities that are customised for specific industry verticals. With this alliance, we have a compelling value proposition for the hospitality industry." Steve Rushmore, president and founder of HVS International, said, "We are well aware of how critical role integration and cost efficiency plays in the hospitality industry today. The strategic alliance between the largest hospitality consulting firm in the world and one of the leading technology and business process outsourcing giants promises to offer unparalleled solutions to the industry."

Better Deals to go international

After its substantial presence in the Indian food service market, Better Deals is ready to set up its operational arm in London, UK. Anil Malhotra of Better Deals says, "Soon, we are going to open an international office in London to cater directly to our international clients and dealers. There has been a rise in the international demand for Indian cutlery and crockery products which are comparable to international standards."

For the hospitality sector in the Indian market, domestic companies are now finding relevance in the outside markets, and since India is a hub for steel items, domestic manufacturers are gearing up to compete strongly. Malhotra informs, "We have also diversified into hand-crafted stainless steel cutlery which is being appreciated by many in the service industry. The soon-to-be-opened London office will help us reach the other European markets where Indian service products are getting positive recognition." Established in April 1989, Better Deals started tailor-making crockery as per ambience of the banquet wares/buffet display items of various shapes and sizes for top line hotels and caterers/restaurants. Malhotra adds, "Now we have ventured into colourful crockery apart from the conventional white ones. It also exports stoneware to countries like Germany, France, Italy, Dubai, Muscat, Mauritius and South Africa."

TDSAT tells broadcasters to follow TRAI norms for disconnection

The telecommunications and broadcasting industry's tribunal Telecom Dispute Settlement Authority (TDSAT) has asked channel distributors like Star and Zee to follow Telecom Regulatory Authority of India's (TRAI's) disconnection norms of serving a 21-day notice prior to disconnecting signals to hotels. The ruling was in response to a petition filed by the Federation of Hotel & Restaurant Association of India (FHRAI) against TRAI's decision not to fix channel prices for hotels and asking them to negotiate with broadcasters.