The Hyderabad Metro Rail (HMR) is planning to approach the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) and other prominent technological universities in the country to devise metro rail specific courses for engineering students, and train them to handle both the technical and management sides of metro rail operations in the next five years.

HMR officials see a huge demand for engineers specialised in metro rail technology. With metro projects in New Delhi, Chennai and Bengaluru already facing a severe shortage of engineers having expertise in metro rail technology, HMR wants to make sure the supply meets demand.

Out of the 50,000 skilled workers engaged by the project in the next five years, HMR requires about 5,000 engineers specially qualified in metro rail technology during the construction period itself.
The officials estimate they will need about 50,000 engineers with expertise in metro rail technology once the project commences operations in 2015.

“Unless we address the issue now, it will be difficult to meet the demand for engineers in coming years for the metro rail project. We will approach the IITs and other prominent technological universities to devise tailor-made courses suitable for the metro rail project,” said a senior official of HMR. He added that the project requires not just civil engineers, but also professionals in electrical, signalling and air-conditioning engineering.

The Delhi Metro has recently written to the Union HRD ministry to introduce metro rail-specific courses in IITs.

IIT-Madras has also recently launched a postgraduate diploma programme in metro rail engineering and management in association with Chennai Metro Rail Ltd (CMRL). The first batch of students of this customised course will pass out in a few months and join CMRL.

"Metro rail is a specialised field that needs engineers who have a sound knowledge of civil, mechanical, electrical, and electronics and communication engineering. The tailor-made courses devised by IITs and other institutions will help us get a talented workforce for the future, who can handle both the technical and management sides of metro rail operations," said the senior official quoted above.

With more big cities in the country opting for metro rail projects to ease traffic congestion, employment opportunities for metro rail engineering experts have been expanding on a large scale.