Government is planning to set up a national centre for animation, gaming and visual

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effects to meet shortage of skilled professionals in the field.

A sum of Rs 52 crore has been set aside by the Planning Commission for the purpose.

Sources in the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting said the proposed centre would promote technical talent in the entertainment sector through specific courses such as animation, digitisation and visual effects.

The centre, which could come up at Pune, where the Film and Television Institute of India is situated, is being set up for meeting the shortage of skilled professionals in the field.

Official sources said the Planning Commission has already set aside Rs 52 crore for the centre and it may be set up through public-private partnership (PPP).

In fact, even the 11th Five Year Plan had suggested that the government should set up a centre for excellence in animation, gaming and special effects to address the problem of manpower shortage in such a high-tech content industry.

With the Indian animation and gaming industry expected to grow, the I&B ministry is said to have engaged a consultant to prepare a report on the human resource requirement in this sector.

Industry sources said with growing digital content in Indian films and also with the number of animation films going up, the need for a specialised centre providing training in this field is all the more required.

Although there are several private animation-training institutes, apart from a few government-run colleges having animation curriculum, India, as of today, has only a handful of institutes teaching high-end animation techniques, sources say.