Career HotliNE
Mushrooming prospects
Pervin Malhotra

Q Where can I learn mushroom cultivation? Does it have good scope?

A Did you know that of the 1,000-1,400 species of mushrooms growing in India (and 2000 in the world), as many as 300-odd species are edible? There is huge demand for mushrooms in western countries like Israel, US & Europe. Indian production is set to reach 6 lakh tonnes by 2020.

Besides being a profitable cottage industry, mushroom farming is also very eco-friendly as it uses agricultural waste / by-products for fertiliser. The spent compost is further used as organic manure and casing material.

The National Research Centre for Mushrooms (ICAR), Chambaghat, Solan-173213 (HP), offers a 10-day workshop on Mushroom Production Technology for new entrepreneurs, commercial mushroom growers etc. For details regarding the next session, contact the Director, Tel: 01792-2230451, 30767 or e-mail: ahlawat_op@hotmail.com

The NRCM has achieved a successful breakthrough in the cultivation of the exotic reishi mushroom, which is famed for its numerous medicinal properties. With China currently being the major supplier, the world trade is a hefty $ 4 billion (a single 100 mg capsule costs $1). IGNOU has also launched a vocational programme in mushroom cultivation through distance learning. You could also contact your nearest Krishi Vigyan Kendra, HAU, Hisar or your state Department of Horticulture for information and guidance.

Haryana is the largest mushroom producing state with over 300 farming units cultivating over six lakh trays (5,000 metric tonnes, i.e. a tenth of India’s total production). Sonepat alone produces close to 3.13 lakh trays. Make sure you procure good quality spawn.

Recently a model Farmer’s Training Centre has been set up by the Punjab National Bank in Sacha Khera village, the first of its kind in Haryana.

The great thing about mushroom cultivation is that it can be done indoors even in winter by regulating the temperature. A small mushroom house with 100 trays of compost can fetch a profit of Rs 10,000 per crop.

A word of caution: Between 1993-98, nearly 35 companies including Tatas, Thapars, Hindustan Lever ventured into mushroom cultivation. However, within five years they had to shut shop. So before venturing forth you must be ready to put in 20 hour days to meet the exacting standards, quality and consistency for year round supply of mushroom and of course you need to be truly passionate about your work.

Q I am doing BA honours and am in third year. I love cooking and want to become a chef. I want to know whether it is safe for a girl to become a chef. My father told me that the timings are not good and very few girls become chefs. Is it true? What are the prospects?

— Sayantani Dasgupta

A Chefs are undoubtedly the backbone of the hospitality industry. But the kitchen still remains a male -dominated field despite the large number of women passing out of hotel management institutes.

Yes, it is true that our conservative family mindset and the somewhat strenuous workload in Indian kitchens due to the labour-intensive mechanisms used in food preparation, the prospect of working shoulder-to-shoulder with male colleagues through long hours, has deterred women from entering this very interesting and challenging profession.

However, with hotels increasingly looking towards diversifying their menu, this field offers tremendous growth prospects, particularly for women who have a natural flair for optimisation and innovation. Remember the hand that rules the kitchen rules the world. Although the numbers are still small in relative terms, a number of young and ambitious women chefs are slowly making their way into star kitchens. ITC Hotels, for instance, employs around 35 women chefs at different levels, while the F&B director of Hotel Leela, Bangalore, is an expat lady, Mary Tsang. In fact, winner of the Lady Chef of the Year Award and Executive Chef, Manisha Bhasin, Marriott Delhi, is the only Indian to be rated among the top 10 chefs across the Marriott global network.

There are several different ways of getting to be a chef.

Even if you don't have a culinary background, you can join a hotel directly as a kitchen apprentice. Starting at the lowest level you can work your way up to the supervisory level within six-seven years.

Some of the leading star-rated hotel chains like the Oberois, Taj Hotels, Welcome Group etc also offer a specialisation in this field in their graduate management training programmes. Selected graduates are put through a rigorous training programme, after which they are absorbed into the various departments as Asst. Managers.

You can choose to work for a 5-star restaurant or you could opt for smaller restaurant chain. Other opportunities lie in flight catering, clubs and commercial kitchens of large establishments. After some years you would have the necessary experience to start your own restaurant or catering service. If you remain in the hotel industry, you can rise to be an executive chef in 10-15 years. Even if you enter at the lowest rung as an apprentice you can, if you are hard working and talented, rise to the position of executive chef.

Vocational vistas

Q I have just completed Class XII with 50 per cent marks. Since I belong to a poor family I will be unable to go in for higher studies. Where can I enroll for some useful short-term vocational training?

— Nadeshta Hasan

A The Regional Vocational Training Institute for Women under DGET, M/o Labour and Employment, offers various vocational training programs exclusively for women.

These include a 2-week course in stitching of jhabla and frock, ladies garments, kurta, pyjama and bermuda, gents garments, achar making, jam jelly and murabba-making, personal grooming and beauty care, mehendi and bindi design for which the eligibility is Class VIII pass.

For the tech savvy women, two-week courses are also available in computer fundamentals, windows and MS Word, presenting documents using Power Point and Paint Brush, Domestic Electrical Appliances Repair. The minimum eligibility for these courses is Class X.

Besides, you are also eligible for a number of vocational courses that are offered for two months each in English shorthand, elementary typing, Hindi shorthand.

Finally, RTVI also offers a course in Garment Pattern Advance Label Design (Through manipulation and grading / manipulation and adaptation). However, the qualification for this is ITI in Cutting and Sewing / Dress Making.

The good thing is you can apply for more than one course. The application and registration fee is Rs 100 while you need to a nominal Rs 50 per week as course fee.

For further details, contact RVTI for Women, Thandi Sarak, New Subzi Mandi, Hisar, Haryana — 125001. Tel: 01662-225840.

World of advice: Do enroll for a BA/BCom course through distance learning from a recognised university in your state so that all possibilities of further study remain open.

Biotech beckons

Q I have passed plus two in first division and now I want to join BSc biotechnology. Please tell me if my decision is right and tell me about the job opportunities in the field of biotechnology.

— Avi Singla

A Projected to fetch mega-revenues, biotechnology is the fastest growing industry in the world today, even surpassing the growth of the hi-profile IT sector. Given the global environmental situation and the growing demand for safer and better products, governments around the world are spending hundreds of billions of dollars, to find appropriate solutions to critical problems.

Biocon India’s Chairperson and MD, Kiran Majumdar Shaw, is convinced that the burgeoning biotechnology sector — propelled by the growth in the agriculture, pharmaceutical and medical industry is all set to clock in business worth $ 5 billion by 2010. As a consequence, this would create close to 1 million jobs in the next 4-5 years. She says that the industry is growing at the rate of 30 per cent p.a.

India has tasted modest success so far, but is fast catching up. Employment prospects: Exciting developments in genomics and DNA research, medical and agro-biotech are capturing the world’s fancy. As this is essentially a research-oriented field, there is a demand for scientists and researchers for which a PhD is the minimum requirement. There is need for more trained technicians with excellent lab skills.

Many avenues of employment exist and many new ones like bioinformatics, are emerging.

Even if we discount the exaggeration, BT does seem to be a "happening" field of work, offering exciting future prospects. In other words, it is unlikely that qualified biotechnologists will remain unemployed.

Most biotechnologists work in pharmaceutical, chemical, medical, instrumentation, poultry, animal and plant breeding, seed, floriculture and plant tissue culture-based industries. They are also involved in planning, production and management of bio-process and chemical industries, and pollution control in manufacturing plants. Many others work in universities and research labs run by the government like ICMR, ICAR, CSIR, DBT, DST and TIFR besides R & D departments in the corporate sector.

Employers include multinationals, large public and private sector corporations, pharma majors and research institutions and laboratories, both government and private, around the country.

You can even look at managerial positions in large organisations, where a Master’s in Biotechnology would work in your favour.

Even the state governments have now drawn up plans to develop biotech-based industries. But we still need to focus on original research like discovering new molecules and forge better industry-academic interface to be at the cutting edge.

Q What is the final decision regarding UGC NET for Lecturership? Is it mandatory for Ph.D holders?

A The University Grants Commission (UGC) has in principle accepted the Balachandra Mungrekar Committee’s recommendation for relaxing the rules for the appointment of teachers. Ph.D holders will no longer need to clear the screening exam or National Eligibility Test (NET) for appointment as lecturers in PG educational institutes. Similarly, M.Phil holders are exempted from NET for appointment at undergraduate level. This will help universities fill thousands of vacancies at technical institutes. Meanwhile, no specific date has been set for the implementation of the new rules.

The UGC has announced six new scholarships – three each in sciences and social sciences stream for which the scholarship amount has been increased to Rs 60 crore. As many as 1500 junior Research Fellow-ships will be offered in both streams.

Call of the sea

Q I am too crazy about merchant navy but I could not get 60 per cent in PCM. What should I do? Please tell me. I am anxiously awaiting your reply.

— Manas Gambhir

A If you don’t have the mandatory 60 per cent in Class 12, don’t despair. There’s a way out.

You can opt for the 1-year Pre-Sea Diploma in Nautical Science leading to B.Sc Nautical Science from (IGNOU).

The eligibility for enrolling in this course is a pass in plus two or equivalent exam with Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics and English as separate subjects with a minimum PCM average 55 per cent. Age limit: 20 years.

The application deadline for the August batch is over but the entrance test for the January batch will be in October/ November. The forms will be available in September.

After completing this theory part, you can join a shipping company to continue your practical onboard training.

Research in chemistry

Q I have done MSc in chemistry and plan to do MPhil in the subject. Please suggest the way for doing research work in chemistry. Does research in India have any value? I'm ambitious but confused as everyone tells me that research has no place in India.

— Tawanpreet Kaur

A Specialising in chemistry will open up opportunities for working in research and development, management, marketing, production and a host of related fields. In fact, no other field in pure science offers such a wide array of options.

If you are interested in research, a good option would be industrial research. You must also probably be aware that there are several CSIR labs where chemistry is one of the thrust areas. These include the Center for Bio-Chemical Technology, Delhi; Central Drug Research Institute, Lucknow; Indian Institute of Chemical Biology, Kolkata, and large pharmaceutical firms like Dr Reddy's Lab, etc. DRDO also recruits chemical scientists. So do Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) and Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research, Kalpakkam (TN).

It’s an exaggeration to say that there’s no scope for research in India.

Research facilities in many of our universities are depressing. In a move to stem this downslide, Rs 400 crore is being allocated each year till 2007 exclusively for developing the infrastructure.

However, from your question it seems that you are also probably seeking greater monetary rewards in which case an R & D job in industry (ranging from plastics and polymers to pharmaceutical and biochemical) might be the right stepping stone. Industrial Chemistry is a multi-faceted field, which opens up a wide range of options in pure research as well as commercial applications.

Only a deep interest and passion for the subject coupled with a high degree of commitment will see you through the extended and at times, lonely period of study. This may also demand some extent of sacrifice in terms of delaying your entry many years into a "real" job or starting a family. But if you love the subject, the joys and rewards of plumbing the depths of knowledge to explore what lies beneath the surface can be hugely satisfying.

Please send in your query, preferably on a postcard, along with your full name, complete address and academic qualifications to: Editor, Jobs and Careers, The Tribune, Sector 29, Chandigarh-160030, or at careers@tribunemail.com