Encouraged by the demand of skilled manpower in the booming retail sector, National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS) is likely to come up with a new course on retail services and retail management for students with a minimum eligibility of plus two.

“We are exploring the various aspects of the course like duration, curriculum and eligibility criteria of the students and we hope it will be launched as early as possible,” NIOS chairman Prof M C Pant told Deccan Herald.

The retail chains like Subhiksha and Reliance Fresh were looking for skilled personnel for managing stores, accounts and data processing but there were not too many young people who had the requisite training to serve the retail sector, he said.