North East & Kashmir placements trip on unrest, clampdown

New Delhi | Kolkata: Leading schools such as the Indian Institute of Management (IIM) Shillong and the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Guwahati are feeling the impact of unrest due to the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA). Placements have also been disrupted at the National Institute of Technology (NIT) Srinagar because of the clampdown in the northern state.

While the NIT set up an alternative interview site near Delhi and some recruiters are trying to speak with candidates over video conferencing, the solutions aren’t ideal. The schools are worried that recruiters will be wary of returning to campuses unless situation improves.

At IIM Shillong, even visiting faculty, especially from Delhi, Bengaluru and Mumbai, have been facing trouble reaching the campus due to sporadic protests in Meghalaya and Assam. Travel in Guwahati and Shillong has taken a hit due to the situation in the region. As of today, the curfew has been lifted but the region is preparing for another big rally on December 18 called by a student union.


“These sporadic rallies are hampering the recruitment drive as, once again, recruiters will cancel or postpone their plans to visit,” said a member of the placement team at IIM Shillong. “We are struggling almost every day as the unrest continues, despite the lifting of curfew as recruiters are still sceptical.” Alarge number of people in the northeast use Guwahati airport, which has more flights than Shillong. “Till this weekend, taxis were not plying in Guwahati, due to which most of the recruiters are having a tough time to come to the campus from Guwahati airport,” said a placement source at IIM Shillong. The number of interviews at the Shillong school has dropped, with most of these being conducted via video chats.