Puducherry opens second Alliance Francaise

New branch, opened in Lawspet, will offer French-language courses to large student population

The Alliance Francaise in Puducherry, the oldest in Asia, opened a second branch in the city; Olivier Litvine, director, Alliance Francaise with J. Arawindhan, chief mentor, Achariya Group of Educational Institutions, with the MoU about the launch —Photo: T. Singaravelou

In a bid to tap into the large student population of Puducherry’s suburbs, the Alliance Francaise here announced the launch of its second branch in Lawspet which will offer French-language courses, in partnership with the Achariya Group of Educational Institutions.

The new branch will be operating out a building of the Achariya Group of Educational Institutions in Lawspet close to the airport. It will offer all the courses at the same fees as the existing Alliance Francaise, and be equipped with all necessary facilities and furniture, said Alliance Francaise Director Olivier Litvine.

Lawspet and surrounding areas are where the new Indian middle class resides, said Mr. Litvine. “There is a population of 400,000 living in Puducherry’s suburbs. With public transport being inadequate, the present Alliance Francaise is too far for many of our students. We needed to select a place which could enable a majority of our students not to travel too far to reach their classes,” said Mr. Litvine. “This will boost the number of people learning French in Puducherry,” he added.

Mr. Litvine stressed on the assets of knowledge of French and being multi-lingual for improved career prospects with more companies and call centres seeking French-speaking people in India. Alliance Francaise is proud to be a contributor to vocational training in India, he said.

With Puducherry’s longstanding ties with France and the French language, students here have an added advantage of learning the language here, said J. Arawindhan, Chief Mentor, Achariya Group of Educational Institutions. He said Alliance Francaise provides the benefit of learning French in an authentic manner to students. With knowledge of English becoming more common in India, it was important for students to gain an edge by being multi-lingual, said Mr. Arawindhan. He also noted how suburbs like Lawspet are where the middle class, middle aged and student communities reside.

Classes at the new branch in Lawspet will begin from December, and will be held in evening hours on weekdays, and morning to evening on weekends. Around 100 students can be accommodated in the new branch, said Mr. Litvine.

The Alliance Francaise in Puducherry has around 2500 registrations a year, making it the centre with one of the highest students to population ratio, said Mr. Litvine.

Its student community includes college-goers, job seekers and professionals to long stay tourists and Franco Tamils who attend refresher courses.

Specialised French courses include Business French, French civilisation and culture, and French in the hotel and tourism industry. Offering beginner, intermediate and advanced levels, students receive the Diplôme d'études en langue française (DELF), the French language diploma, which is recognised worldwide.