Chandigarh, Apr 23: ACC, the cement and building materials company of the diversified Adani Portfolio, along with the Adani Foundation, through its Adani Skill Development Centre (ASDC) at ACC Gagal, Himachal Pradesh, is building a new generation of hospitality professionals from the villages of Himachal Pradesh by supporting one determined young person at a time.
Himachal Pradesh is a state defined by its mountains, its valleys, and increasingly, its hospitality industry. Hotels, resorts, and guest properties dot the landscape from Kasauli to Dharamshala, but for most young people growing up in the villages nearby, those gleaming lobbies might as well have been a world away. Adani Foundation's ASDC at ACC Gagal is bridging this distance and gap. By offering industry-aligned training in hospitality trades; from food and beverage service to front office operations and accommodation management, the centre is creating a direct pipeline from rural Himachal Pradesh into one of the state's most employment-rich sectors. The stories of Palak, Saniya, Saneha, and Vivek show exactly what that pipeline looks like when it works.
Palak, from Jejwin, is one of eight in a family held together by her father's daily-wage construction work. Saniya, from the small village of Alsu, has grown up watching her father cook for others and quietly wondering what her own path might look like. Saneha, from Malyawar, is a farmer's daughter who has always wanted more options, not just more effort. And Vivek, from Hawani Kol, has inherited his father's work ethic from years of watching him farm through every season and is determined to find a different kind of field to work in. Four different backgrounds, four different stories, but a single common thread of believing that something better was possible, and the willingness to go after it.
At ASDC Gagal, their belief found structure. The training they received went beyond technical instruction — it reshaped how they carried themselves, how they communicated, and how they walked into a room. Palak, who had never imagined herself behind a hotel front desk, discovered a confidence she didn't know she had. Saniya, once hesitant to speak in a group, found her voice in a professional setting. Saneha, whose family had measured progress in harvests, began measuring it in milestones. And Vivek, who had arrived at the centre unsure of what he was capable of, left knowing exactly what he was worth.
The results speak for themselves. Palak is now a Guest Service Associate at Cassia Resort, Kasauli, earning Rs. 15,000 per month with food and accommodation. Saniya joined her at Cassia Resort, earning Rs. 14,594 per month. Saneha is a Front Office Officer at Bella Heights Hotel, Dharamshala, earning Rs. 12,000 per month with food and accommodation. And Vivek manages front office operations at Best Western Hotel, Kasauli, also earning Rs. 12,000 per month with food and accommodation. Four villages. Four hotels. Four families who now have a different kind of future to look forward to.
What Adani Foundation's ASDC at ACC Gagal is building in Himachal Pradesh is not only a skill centre but also a quiet but powerful engine of social mobility, turning ambition that once had nowhere to go into careers that are just getting started.
