In a country where engineering is seen as a golden ticket to success, a harsh truth is emerging — fresh B.Tech graduates, who spent about Rs.20 lacs and 4 years of their life to acquire that qualification, and working in top IT companies like TCS, Infosys, Wipro, and Cognizant, are earning less than skilled and semi-skilled workers like plumbers, electricians, and salon professionals. This story looks at the data and the disturbing reality behind such a huge gap in earning by B.Tech freshers placed from campuses.
In NIRF 2025, IIT Madras retained the top spot in engineering ranking. Here are the top engineering colleges in India:
NIRF Rank | Engineering College |
1 | IIT Madras |
2 | IIT Delhi |
3 | IIT Bombay |
4 | IIT Kanpur |
5 | IIT Kharagpur |
6 | IIT Roorkee |
7 | IIT Hyderabad |
8 | IIT Guwahati |
9 | IIT Tiruchirapalli |
10 | IIT BHU |
11 | Birla Institute of Technology & Science -Pilani |
12 | Indian Institute of Technology Indore |
13 | National Institute of Technology Rourkela |
14 | S.R.M. Institute of Science and Technology |
15 | Indian Institute of Technology (Indian School of Mines) |
16 | Vellore Institute of Technology |
17 | National Institute of Technology Karnataka, Surathkal |
18 | Jadavpur University |
19 | Indian Institute of Technology Patna |
20 | Anna University |
This Story also Contains
Back in 2007–2010, the average salary for entry-level software engineers in India stood at around ₹3.5 lakh per annum. Fast forward to 2024, and shockingly, that number remains unchanged for most fresher hires. Despite massive growth in company profits and a 100% surge in inflation, starting salaries at these tech giants remained flat. In real terms, they actually fell by more than half.
Company | Monthly Salary | Yearly Salary | Per Hour Income |
TCS (Associate System Engineer) | ₹ 28,072 | ₹ 3.36 lakh | ₹ 156 |
Infosys (System Engineer Trainee) | ₹ 30,000 | ₹ 3.60 lakh | ₹ 167 |
Cognizant (Programmer Analyst Trainee) | ₹ 33,499 | ₹ 4.01 lakh | ₹ 186 |
Wipro (Junior Member) | ₹ 25,000 | ₹ 3.00 lakh | ₹ 139 |
Assuming a standard 180-hour work month (9 hours/day, 20 days/month), the hourly earnings for these roles range from ₹139 to ₹186. These figures are shockingly low when you consider that they have remained largely unchanged since 2007-2010, when₹ 3.5 lakh per year was a competitive starting salary. Meanwhile, inflation has nearly doubled, and the cost of a B.Tech degree has surged from ₹1-2 lakh to ₹20-25 lakh over the same period. This means that graduates are investing significantly more time, effort, and money into their education, only to earn salaries that have not kept pace with economic realities.
In contrast, the profits of these IT giants have grown exponentially. For instance, companies like TCS have seen their profits soar from₹3,000-4,000 crore to ₹34,000 crore, an 8-10 fold increase. Yet, the starting salaries for fresh graduates remain stuck, highlighting a systemic issue of wage stagnation in the IT sector.
Let’s talk about the often-overlooked skilled workforce: plumbers, electricians, cleaners, massage therapists, pest control workers, beauticians, carpenters, etc. These individuals are often hired through platforms like Urban Company, which recently disclosed detailed earning reports as part of its IPO filings.
Details | Unit | All Professionals | >30 Services /Month | Top 20% by Orders | Top 10% by Orders | Top 5% by Orders |
Percentage of monthly active service professionals | % | 100 | 63 | 20 | 10 | 5 |
Gross earnings (average) | ₹ per month | 50,392 | 62,541 | 77,211 | 86,546 | 92,619 |
Urban Company fee % | % | 27.95 | 27.29 | 27.39 | 26.93 | 27.07 |
Indirect taxes borne by professionals | ₹ per month | 479 | 644 | 651 | 721 | 785 |
Travel costs | ₹ per month | 1,852 | 2,417 | 2,848 | 3,211 | 3,541 |
Product & additional personnel costs | ₹ per month | 7,490 | 8,451 | 11,267 | 12,489 | 13,504 |
Net average earnings | ₹ per month | 26,489 | 33,962 | 41,292 | 46,815 | 49,719 |
Hours spent on the platform | hours per month | 87 | 109 | 134 | 148 | 160 |
Net earnings per hour | ₹ per hour | 304 | 312 | 308 | 316 | 311 |
Yes, even the average service provider on Urban Company earns over ₹300 per hour, almost twice as much as a fresh B.Tech graduate.
Over the past 15–20 years, the starting salaries for B.Tech graduates at major IT firms like TCS, Infosys, Wipro, and Cognizant have barely changed. Despite inflation doubling, education costs rising 4–5 times, and corporate profits growing by 8–10 times, fresh graduates still earn around ₹3 to ₹3.5 lakh per annum — the same as they did in 2007–2010.
On the other hand, blue collar workers — like electricians, plumbers, drivers, and salon professionals — especially those working with platforms like Urban Company, Swiggy, Zomato, Uber, and Ola, are now earning more than engineering graduates, both monthly and per hour.
Company / Category | Earnings per Hour (₹) | Monthly Salary (₹) |
TCS (Associate System Engineer) | 156 | 28,072 |
Infosys (System Engineer Trainee) | 167 | 30,000 |
Cognizant (Programmer Analyst Trainee) | 186 | 33,499 |
Wipro (Junior Member) | 139 | 25,000 |
Urban Company (Skilled Professionals) | 311 | 49,719 |
Swiggy (Delivery Executive) | 315 | 25,234 |
Zomato (Delivery Partner) | 350 | 28,000 |
Uber (Driver) | 331 | 29,732 |
OLA (Driver) | 367 | 33,000 |
Urban Company’s average professional earns ₹311/hour, while even the top software firms offer just ₹156–₹186/hour. These skilled professionals — including plumbers, beauticians, pest control workers, carpenters, and massage therapists — often work 160 hours/month and earn up to ₹49,719 after deductions like taxes, commission, and material costs.
Back in 2007, a B.Tech student could recover their education costs in 2–3 years. Now, it can take 6 to 8 years, or more — assuming they get placed at all.
This isn’t just a salary comparison — it’s a reflection of India’s broken employment structure. Companies are capitalising on the desperate need for jobs, while skilled labourers in the gig economy are gaining financial independence faster and with fewer barriers.
Unless fresher salaries are revised in line with inflation and education cost, the engineering dream may soon lose its value — both emotionally and economically. The RoI are now against the students and in favour of the educational institutions and the companies that hire the freshers. The real losers are the students and parents. Would any one look at this and have the courage to correct this?
On Question asked by student community
Hello Swati
Yes, your EWS certificate will be valid for JEE Main 2026 and counselling if it’s issued after April 1, 2025.
This is because EWS certificates are valid for one financial year from April to March.
So, a certificate made in October 2025 will be for FY 2025–26, which covers both JEE and counselling. You’ll need the certificate number during JEE registration in October 2025.
Even if you don’t have it yet, you can still register and upload it later during counselling. Just make sure the certificate clearly mentions the correct financial year.
Always keep a few extra copies and the original ready for verification.
You're good to go if it’s issued after April 1, 2025
COMPETETIVE EXAMS in the modern world are driven by the two modes of preparation, online and offline. While offline institutes offer you excellence with their old reputed brand names, Online institutes show fast pace learning and personalized planning.
Online Coachings are better if you want to
offline institute offer a physical teacher but as it has been seen from a general trend that students do not understand in their regular classrooms, and later learn from untrusted online sources further degrading their level of preparation.
CAREER360 provides you trust with the excellence of learning and reinforcing ideas which stand alone in this rat race of testing tirelessly for a so thought unachievable goal. You will get the rightest guidance into your exam adorned with regular testing to level up your standard.
Below is the link to find more about how CAREER360 is the best online platform for you to crack JEE and achieve your dream of ENGINEERING.
- Online Coaching for IIT JEE Main, NEET, BITSAT and More Exams - Careers360
Hello,
The best books for JEE Main Exam are:
For PHYSICS:
For CHEMISTRY:
For Mathematics:
you can also check the link for the best books for JEE Main exam:
https://engineering.careers360.com/articles/best-books-for-jee-main
I hope this answer helps you!
Hello Hitesh
A state EWS certificate is usually not valid for JEE Advanced or JoSAA counselling.
You’ll need an EWS certificate in the central government format, as required by IITs.
Even if issued by your local authority, it must clearly mention it’s as per Govt. of India norms.
You can visit your tahsildar/revenue office and request it in the “central format for JEE.”
Make sure the issue date is after April 1, 2025, for it to be valid in 2026 counselling.
You don’t need it at the time of JEE Main, only during Advanced registration and JoSAA.
You still have enough time to get it updated, so no stress, just don’t delay it too long.
Hello,
Yes, there are some good residential schools in Tamil Nadu that provides both board studies along with best and strong coaching for JEE/NEET.
Here I list out best Residential integrated school in Tamil Nadu:
Vevea ham School Dhara Puram, Tirupur
Narayana Boarding School, Athipalayam (Coimbatore)
Chinmaya International Residential School (CIRS)
Sindhu Schools, Dhara Puram
From my opinion, you should visit and check their past records, fees, and see which one suits your needs best.
All the best.
Ranked #43 among Engineering colleges in India by NIRF | Highest Package 1.3 CR , 100% Placements
AICTE ‘Platinum’ institute | NIRF 2024 Rank Band 151-200 under the engineering category | Tier-1 accreditation by NBA | Merit & Sports Scholarships
Dive into everything you need to know about IITs—from eligibility and cutoffs to fees and placements.
Ranked #5 among Top Emerging Engineering Institutes | Key Recruiters : Amazon, Accenture, KPMG, EY, Capgemini etc
NAAC A+ Grade | Among top 100 universities of India (NIRF 2024) | 40 crore+ scholarships distributed
Hands on Mentoring and Code Coaching | Cutting Edge Curriculum with Real World Application