It seems the global meltdown will have an impact on placements at the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad (IIM-A) this year, too. There was a general air of disappointment at the institute on Wednesday - Day Zero of final placements for 2009 - as only 9 companies had turned up for recruitment.

Sources said this was 16 companies less than the number that had turned up for recruitment at IIMA on the first day of placements last year. Placement officials at the institute, however, declined to confirm or deny the figures.

Last year, 25 companies had arrived on Day Zero and 65% (i.e., 161 students) of the graduating batch had either received job offers or opted out by the end of the day.

More importantly, this year no investment bank turned up on the first day and the main recruiters were consultancies and marketing companies. The total number of jobs offered to IIMA students on Wednesday was 20.

The mood on the campus was sullen. Sources said that not only were there very few new offers, those made earlier were also now being withdrawn. Moreover, the companies which had arrived on Wednesday did not have more than one job to offer. Talking about the placements, a student said that the situation could not be worse than this.

Dayananda Meitei/ DNA-Daily News & Analysis Source: 3D Syndication