IITians now queue up for defense jobs

Call it an effect of sixth pay commission or recession. For the first time ever, 12 percent of the total recruitment at the Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO) has been from the topnotch IITs of India. Every year, DRDO recruits 500 scientists for all of its 52 labs. This year, 60 of them have been from IITs.

In previous years, all the labs of the organization would manage to recruit one or two engineering graduates from the premier institutes. DRDO human resource officials told Times of India, "After the sixth Pay Commission, the pay, packages and promotion schemes were more streamlined and so was career growth. The scientists no longer have to wait for vacancies to get promotions. Plus, the allotment for awards for the scientists has increased to Rs 2 crore annually, double the allotment last year."

Sources said, "Seeing the economic scenario, IITians have flocked to the defence organization this year."

DRDO mainly recruits employees through a common scientist entry test and through campus recruitment across 40 campuses, IITs, central universities and others. The IITians were primarily recruited through the latter. The tag of IIT does not give any weightage in this recruitment process.

In another trend, 30 Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) were also recruited in 2008, of the 150 applicants. Most were to scientist D and E categories, some to science fields and engineering areas of R&D.

The DRDO also has the ROSSA scheme in place now. About 40 scientists, fresh PhD holders, were taken in under the 'registration of students with scholastic aptitudeï' scheme.

Even those who left DRDO for private sector are coming back. About 20 scientists are in line to be placed back.

Sources: Silicon India