PSUs return to IIT-B campus with plum jobs

Government companies had stopped visiting the campuses owing to the Madras high court order, which has now been stayed

The second phase of placements at Indian Institute of Technology-Bombay (IIT-B) got a boost with public sector companies returning to the campus after a hiatus.

Government-run companies hiring from the IITs and the IIMs had stopped temporarily following a petition filed in the Madras high court in 2014. (HT file photo)

Government companies had stopped visiting the campuses owing to the Madras high court order, which has now been stayed.

As a result, the IIT-B placement cell has approached a series of companies from the government sector. Until Thursday, HPCL and Coal India had conducted interviews and offered jobs to around 20 students on campus and the salary packages offered have been around Rs 10 to Rs 12 lakhs per annum.

“The second phase of hiring is anyway a slow process but now that there is no ban on PSUs hiring from IITs, we are hopeful that more companies will come on campus and make job offers,” said Atul Shukla, placement manager for IIT-B.

He added that while till last year only one company, Coal India, had come on board to offer jobs to students, this year, two firms have already hired students and they are hoping to bring more interested PSUs to the campus.

Government-run companies hiring from the IITs and the IIMs had stopped temporarily following a petition filed in the Madras high court in 2014.

The petition sought a ban on public sector companies opting for campus placements at private institutes, thus, eating into chances of students from other government institutes vying for the same jobs. This ban was finally lifted in December 2015, giving private institutes a free hand to approach more companies.

“There’s no way that a court can hold PSUs from hiring students from private institutes, because in no way is the constitution violated. Even when there was a ban on them hiring, we’ve had one or two PSUs approaching the institute and have also hired a handful of students. This year, what is even more encouraging is the fact that they are matching pay scales with other private companies,” said a IIT-B senior official. BPCL and Coal India has also hired students from IIT-Gandhinagar and IIT-Delhi this year.