Following in the chief minister’s footsteps, the West Bengal University of Technology (WBUT) has set about wooing students from Mumbai to its engineering and management institutes.

Less than a week after Buddhabeb Bhattacharjee showcased Bengal in Mumbai as a favoured business destination, the WBUT has decided to open the first of its city offices in the country’s commercial capital for attracting students from Maharashtra to 20-odd private engineering and management institutions in the city and 30 more elsewhere in the state.

“We were amazed at the enthusiasm among students in Maharashtra and other states to study some of our courses. Our office in Bandra, Mumbai, will help us to draw a larger number of students from there next year,” said WBUT registrar Samir Bandyopadhyay.

The university will also set up a placement centre in Mumbai, from where officials will be in regular contact with various firms to know their requirements.

Once the Mumbai office becomes operational, the WBUT will open a similar office in Chennai.

For the first time this year, the engineering colleges in the city and districts were thrown open to students from across the country.

Around 1,500 seats in engineering and management institutes were reserved for students who had qualified the All-India Engineering Entrance Examinations (AIEEE).

Of the reserved seats, 1,200 were filled up immediately after the AIEEE results were announced, WBUT officials said.

“The response was encouraging. Students from Maharashtra, Mumbai in particular, showed keen interest in some of our newly-introduced courses. And that prompted us to open the Mumbai office,” registrar Bandyopadhyay said.

The WBUT hopes to fill up at least 5,000 of the 15,000 seats in engineering and management institutes with outstation candidates.

The courses in demand in Maharashtra are insurance and risk management, travel and tourism management, supply chain management and media science.

“Insurance and risk management seems to be one of the most sought-after courses among outstation students. Western Railway has shown interest in helping us run the course more effectively,” said a university official.