Students of three premier engineering colleges in town - Indian Institute of Technology, National Institute of Technology and Birla Institute of Technology - are beaming after receiving a bounty during placements.

Around 55 per cent of IIT-Patna students have already got placed in different MNCs five months ahead of placement season. The total placement was 65 per cent last year. Placement in-charge K.C. Ray said: 'Students are getting more options as more firms are turning up to hire.' Around 36 companies visited the campus last year, while 25 have already visited it this year. 'We are expecting more companies,' he said.

Some hiring firms include e-commerce giants like Amazon, Snapdeal and Flipkart. Amazon hired eight students, offering them Rs 25 lakh per annum. The other companies hired 11 students at packages ranging from Rs 12.5 lakh to Rs 15 lakh per annum. Companies from the core sector and software also recruited students at good pay.

Venkatesh, a final year electrical engineering student of IIT-Patna who got placed at Tata Motors, said: 'Given the response, we are expecting more companies, like Cisco USA, Apic System, which had offered good salaries last year.'

Sources attribute the good response to the perception that the economy would come out of its sluggish phase. A senior faculty at IIT-Patna said on condition of anonymity: 'The overall mood appears upbeat. It has more to do with mood than actual growth in economy as the new government at the Centre has not yet announced any policy that could remove hurdles impending growth.'

At NIT-Patna, 66 per cent of students have got placement five months before recruitment season ends. Last year had seen 75 per cent placement. Placement officer Asim Kumar Burman said: 'The overall placement percentage is likely to cross the previous year's figure.' Many firms - like Oracle, IP Infusion and DRDO - are visiting it for the first time.

Around 10 companies have already visited Birla Institute of Technology-Patna. Wipro had recruited nine students last year, offering them Rs 3.25 lakh. This year, the company has offered jobs to 52 students. Similarly, Tech Mahindra, which hired two students last year, has made offers to 14 students. A placement officer said: 'The number of companies visiting the campus has gone up and they are hiring more students. That is a good sign.'