With over 60 airlines flying nearly 50,000 international passengers in or out of the Indira Gandhi International Airport here daily, it becomes the gateway to India’s Capital for visitors from around the world.
To ensure that its nearly 5,000 personnel deployed at the airport do not lag behind when it comes to communicating with foreign visitors, the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) has installed a computer-based English language lab at its National Industrial Security Academy (NISA) in Hyderabad. The aim is to facilitate self-paced learning of written and spoken English by the trainees. “This is expected to improve their soft skills, which are linked to their command over the language,” said a CISF spokesperson.
Passengers to benefit
“At the airport, our personnel have to deal with and communicate with passengers from across the world. Most passengers prefer to speak in English, which is why it is important that all our personnel deployed at airports have basic proficiency in English,” said a senior CISF official.
“The English language lab training will help them feel more confident during public interaction. Passenger, too, will find it easier to inform them about any problem they face. Since these personnel will be provided intensive training, we will try to ensure they are posted at airports for at least 12 years,” he added.
“The lab is underway with reading material being provided to the personnel and classes being held regularly. Our personnel are already trained on how to interact with passengers in any situation. Improvement in training methods is carried out constantly,” said a CISF spokesperson.
“The training is not only about public interface, but also about how to keep things under control during a difficult situation like an attack, or any other emergency. Apart from language skills, they are also trained to keep their cool and ensure that passengers don’t get agitated,” he said.
“They are also trained with soft skills so that they can be firm, yet courteous, and handle any situation professionally,” he said.
To bring standardisation in training and to expand the reach of training resources to CISF units across the country, the Learning Management System has been linked to the CISF website and an e-learning module on “handling of irate passengers” has also been developed.
