Chennai: Just as the Indo-US Nuclear Cooperation Agreement seems to be entering its final phase of completion, educational institutions in India are already gearing up to meet a possible increase in the demand of trained personnel for power stations in the days ahead.

The Indian Institute of Technology, Madras (IIT-M) has decided to start a course in Nuclear Engineering and Technology from the 2009-10 academic session.

M.S. Ananth, IIT Madras Director said, "We were planning to start the course in the 2008 academic session itself. We have finally decided to start the course from 2009."

Owing to the subject's inter-disciplinary approach, the institute is planning to take help from the Mechanical, Chemical engineering and Physics Departments to start the course.

Officials at the institute say that the Homi Bhabha Institute has offered help to them by sending a group of scientists on temporary basis.

Currently, only IIT Kanpur offers a course in nuclear engineering and technology in the country.