The National Institute of Water Sports (NIWS) is designated ''centre'' under Indian Institute of Tourism and Travel Management (IITTM) which run by Tourism Ministry,

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

. The Institute, only one of its nature in South Asia, acts as the apex body for training, education, consultancy and research on areas related to recreational and leisure

Watersports Water sports or aquatic sports are sport activities conducted on waterbodies, and can be categorized according to the degree of immersion by the participants. On the water * Boat racing, the use of powerboats to participate in races * Boatin ...

. The certification and licensing from this Institute are required for carrying out operations in water-bodies such as handling different watercraft for the tourists, swimming pools, water theme-parks etc. Some major disciplines for training and education are life saving, powerboat handling,

sailing Sailing employs the wind—acting on sails, wingsails or kites—to propel a craft on the surface of the ''water'' (sailing ship, sailboat, raft, windsurfer, or kitesurfer), on ''ice'' (iceboat) or on ''land'' (land yacht) over a chosen cour ...

windsurfing Windsurfing is a wind propelled water sport that is a combination of sailing and surfing. It is also referred to as "sailboarding" and "boardsailing", and emerged in the late 1960s from the aerospace and surf culture of California. Windsurfing ga ...

water skiing Water skiing (also waterskiing or water-skiing) is a surface water sport in which an individual is pulled behind a boat or a cable ski installation over a body of water, skimming the surface on two skis or one ski. The sport requires suffic ...

scuba diving Scuba diving is a mode of underwater diving whereby divers use breathing equipment that is completely independent of a surface air supply. The name "scuba", an acronym for "Self-Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus", was coined by Chris ...

river rafting A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of wate ...

and

kayaking Kayaking is the use of a kayak for moving over water. It is distinguished from canoeing by the sitting position of the paddler and the number of blades on the paddle. A kayak is a low-to-the-water, canoe-like boat in which the paddler sits fac ...

. From Academic Year 2016, MBA- Tourism (Tourism & Travel) has been introduced & PhD in Tourism & Travel commenced in July 2018 at its state-of-the art campus.SPM National Institute of Watersports, Ministry of Tourism, adventure tourism, watersport, sailing, windsurfing, water skiing, scuba diving, river rafting, kayaking, Goa, trai...
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Profile

The National Institute of Water Sports was established in July 1990 under the aegis of the Ministry of Tourism, Govt. of India on a 16.5 acres of beach side site in

Panaji Panaji (; also known as Panjim) is the capital of the Indian state of Goa and the headquarters of North Goa district. Previously, it was the territorial capital of the former Portuguese India. It lies on the banks of the Mandovi river estuary ...

.Government of India, Ministry of Tourism
/ref> In 2004, it was designated as a ''A Centre under Indian Institute of Tourism and Travel Management (IITTM)''. It is the first institute of its kind in the South East Asia and only Institution under the Central or State Government for the matters related to Aqua-tourism and adventure.National Institute of Water Sports, GOA
/ref> The Board of Governors of IITTM controls the activities of the institute. The Institute is the apex body for water sports in India and the nodal agency for training, consultancy, development, regulation, framing safety norms, benchmarking and promotion of water sports. The Adventure Tourism Guidelines of Govt. of India designated NIWS as only agency for training, certification and licensing for handling recreational watercraft in India. The spectrum of activities ranges from advising state government agencies and corporate/ private entrepreneurs on safety norms, preparation of feasibility studies, organising water sports awareness and water safety campaigns, inspection and certification of water sports centres to training on water sports disciplines. A training program namely "Sea Rescue Squad" has been introduced recently. It is also actively engaged in competence building of defence agencies especially in the domain of aqua-based adventures.

Facilities

The state-of-the art, iconic campus being built for the Institute at Caranzalem, Near Dona Paula Circle, Panaji, Goa has all modern training and education facilities including an Olympic-size dive pool. It is bestowed with best talents and faculty pool. Efforts are also being made to expand the facility and cover a wide range of adventure sports including land-based adventures at

Caranzalem Caranzalem (pronaunced Caranzale the alphabet m is silent) is a neighborhood located on the west side of the city of Panaji, capital of the Indian state of Goa. It is completely located on the island of Tiswadi, one of the talukas in the state ...

Panjim Panaji (; also known as Panjim) is the capital of the Indian state of Goa and the headquarters of North Goa district. Previously, it was the territorial capital of the former Portuguese India. It lies on the banks of the Mandovi river estuary ...

in Goa.

Gallery

File:GreatFallsKayaker2.jpg, Sport kayaker File:Zanskar rafting (babasteve).jpg, Rafting in

Ladakh Ladakh () is a region administered by India as a union territory which constitutes a part of the larger Kashmir region and has been the subject of dispute between India, Pakistan, and China since 1947. (subscription required) Quote: "Jammu and ...

File:DMURC mens 8+ at BUCS Regatta 2010.png, Rowers in an eight File:Cable wakeboarding at Wake Nation in Fairfield, Ohio near Cincinnati.jpg, Cable wakeboarding File:Andy wakesurfing.jpg, Wakesurfing File:DSCF1252.JPG, Windsurfing

Long-duration Courses

MBA- Tourism (Tourism & Travel) commenced from 2016-17 and PhD (Tourism Management) in July 2018. The program of BBA- Tourism & Travel is also being planned to commence in a year period.

Short-duration Courses

These are meant for certification and licensing to handle various operations and are broadly of three categories: skill enhancement, professional and management courses. Skill Courses * Windsurfing * Dinghy Sailing (Enterprise Class) * Waterskiing * Kayaking * River Rafting Professional Courses * Out Board Motor Maintenance (Basic) * Out Board Motor Maintenance (Advanced) * FRP Boat Repair * Tiller-controlled Power Boat Handling (PBH-T) * Remote Controlled Powerboat Handling (PBH-R) * Life Saving Techniques for Water-sport Operator (LST-WS) * Life Saving Techniques for Water-park Lifeguard (LST-WP) * Life Saving Techniques for Pool Lifeguard (LST-P) * Surf Life Saving Techniques (SLST-S) * Silver Certification for Beach Lifeguard * Surf Life Saving Techniques (SLST-G) * Gold Certification for Beach Lifeguard * CPR Training * CPR Demonstration Programme For Resorts and Industries * PWC / Jet Ski Conversion * Parasail boat conversion course (Remote/ Level-3) * Parasail Operations * Sea Rescue and Equipment Operations Management Courses * Watersport Centre Management * Watersport Orientation Programme for Executives (Course fee includes boarding and lodging) * Communication Skills for Watersport Instructors * Entrepreneurship Development Programme

Setting-up of Infrastructure

During the setting up of the Institute at Caranzalem, there were oppositions from some sections of local fishermen citing that it could affect the traditional fishing in the area and thereby their livelihood. The Goenchea Raponkarancho Ekvott (GRE), an organization of fishermen also submitted a memorandum to the Goa government against setting up of the campus, citing that it would violate the coastal regulation (CRZ) zone guidelines. However, the authorities of the Institute clarified the matter to concerned agencies of the government and the local communities and there is no violation of CRZ stipulations. According to them, the concerns are misplaced and the full-fledged infrastructure would rather be complementary and beneficial to the local communities. The concept and the design of the Institute are such that it nourishes the ecosystem around. Media also reported that all necessary permissions are in place for the development of the campus. The apprehensions of the local communities were also clarified since there was some misunderstanding on its impacts. This environment-friendly infrastructure would be fully operational very shortly. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/goa/Water-sports-institute-to-get-new-iconic-building-at-Caranzalem/articleshow/26377677.cms

Publications

NIWS has published two papers with regard to water sports and tourism. * ''A Report on Problems and Prospects Of Accessible Tourism In India'' * ''A Report on Analyzing the Factors Responsible for Slow-Down in Tourist Arrivals in India''Slowdown Final For Pdf
/ref> * HSRT: A Report on Evaluation of the Hunar se Rozgar Tak (From Skill Development to Employment) Scheme in India * Tourism Development Revisited * Coastal Tourism Development: Patterns & Issues Apart from the two papers, NIWS has also come out with a brochure on ''Safety Norms for Watersports''.