New Delhi: A parliamentary committee has raised concerns over an “unusual decline” in placements across 23 Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) between the academic years 2021-22 and 2023-24. The data shared by the committee shows half of the IITs witnessed significant drop in placements with an average decline of 10 percentage points.
In its report on the ‘2025-26 Demands for Grants of the Department of Higher Education,’ tabled in Parliament Wednesday, the parliamentary standing committee on education, women, children, youth, and sports, recommended that the Union Ministry of Education take measures to enhance “employability”.
The report highlighted that IIT Roorkee saw the largest decline in placement rates during this period, from 98.54 percent in 2021-22 to 79.66 percent in 2023-24, a decrease of 18.88 percentage points.
This was followed by IIT Delhi, which experienced a drop of 14.88 percentage points (from 87.69 percent to 72.81 percent), and IIT Bombay, which saw a reduction of 12.72 percentage points (from 96.11 percent to 83.39 percent) between 2021-22 and 2023-24.
The data compares placements between 2021-22, the second year of the COVID-19 pandemic, and 2023-24, a period when normalcy had largely returned but placements were still affected by the economic slowdown.
The 2023-24 placement season across IITs was notably impacted by the economic downturn, with many institutes reporting a sharp decline in job offers. While most institutions did not disclose placement details last year, a report from IIT Bombay last September revealed that fewer students secured placements compared to previous years, and the lowest salary package fell to just Rs 4 lakh per annum, signaling a concerning shift in the job market.
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Older IITs hit hard
According to the report, among the first-generation and older IITs, IIT Madras experienced a drop of 12.42 percentage points in placements between 2021-22 and 2023-24, while IIT Kanpur saw a decline of 11.15 percentage points. In contrast, IIT Kharagpur recorded a marginal decrease of 2.8 percentage points during the same period.
For IIT-BHU, placements improved in 2023-24 compared to 2021-22. However, they still saw a decline of 7.58 percentage points in 2023-24, compared to the previous academic year.
Comparison of figures from 2022-23 and 2023-24 shows that placements dropped significantly across various IITs during this period. For instance, in the case of IIT Delhi, 89.88 percent students secured placements in 2022-23 which dropped to 72.81 percent in 2023-24.
In case of IIT Madras, 73.29 percent students were placed in 2023-24 against 83.94 percent in 2022-23.
Calling it an “unusual decline”, the committee said it has noted a similar trend in the case of IIITs and NITs.
“The committee notes the placement data shared by the ministry. It observes that barring a few institutions like the IIMs, there is an unusual decline in placements in IITs and IIITs between the year 2021-22 and 2023-24.The committee observes that a similar trend is also visible in the NITs and notes that the data also shows a decline in the average financial package secured by each student placed between 2022-23 and 2023-24,” it stated.
Noting that there could be various reasons for this decline like students opting for higher education or pursuing startup ventures, the committee stated, “Though the placement is dependent on market trends, the department should find out ways and take measures to enhance employability accordingly”.
2nd- and 3rd-gen IITs also struggled
The report shows that a large number of second- and third-generation IITs also witnessed a more than 10-percentage point drop in placements between the academic years 2021-22 and 2023-24.
Among these IITs established between 2008 and 2009, IIT Hyderabad saw the largest decline, with placement rates dropping from 86.52 percent in 2021-22 to 69.33 percent in 2023-24.
Following this, IIT Mandi experienced a drop from 98.13 percent in 2021-22 to 84.03 percent in 2023-24, a decline of 14.1 percentage points.
IIT Ropar saw a reduction of 13.15 percentage points, while IIT Indore recorded a drop of 11.03 percentage points.
According to the report, among the youngest and third-generation IITs established between 2015 and 2016, IIT Jammu saw a significant drop of 21.83 percentage points, with placements falling from 92.08 percent in 2021-22 to 70.25 percent in 2023-24.
This was followed by IIT Tirupati, which saw placements drop from 94.67 percent in 2021-22 to 86.57 percent in 2023-24, and IIT Palakkad, which saw a drop from 97.27 percent to 82.03 percent.
(Edited by Amrtansh Arora)
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