I didn’t like the company, it doesn’t mean none of you would like it. some guys are liking working with it (that’s why it still exists, after so many years). I am giving following points why it didn’t work for me::
1. Location: it is located at the dirtiest place in kolkata, Metiabruz. this place can be described as HELL. it is also sometimes called "karachi in kolkata". pickpockets, street-fights, gang-fightings in broad daylight.
Narrow, filthy roads, dusts, smokes, foul smells, overflowing drains, slums everywhere, slaughtered cows/buffalos on offer, illiterate mass (mostly muslims). river Ganga flows on one side (the good side), other sides are surrounded by dilapidated houses, mosques, slum dwellers.
Every morning before entering the factory, you’ll mourn your decision to join GRSE. you’ll feel the height of helplessness when you get stuck in the chaos everyday while coming in or going out. any guests/VIPs will think 10 times before visiting GRSE main.
2. HR Deptt.: this is the most powerful deptt. in GRSE run by most lousy/callous/incompetent people. you can imagine any engineering company’s performance, if its HR deptt is most powerful rather than other engineering disciplines. earlier (maybe 40 odd yrs ago) GRSE used to attract IIT engineers (naval architects only), because that time there were few or no marine industries. nowadays, they cannot attract even an ordinary engineer from an ordinary private engineering college. whoever comes, tries to flee within a year or two.
3. Growth: after more than 100 years of its existence, it has not grown an inch, rather shrunk. other businesses like pump manufacturing, conveyor system/equipment manufacturing/installations are wound up years ago. but it is ridiculous, you’ll still find those stuffs mentioned in their website as existing business (very funny).
So it is for sure, you will get promotion once in a decade or so. no skill development and people are victims of mis-management and careers are at stake. those few IITans left are lamenting everyday about their spoilt careers and others who have learnt the tricks/tools of the trade and a bit smarter, has left for middle-east, singapore long ago. the draft of river ganges is decreasing fast and GRSE can not build bigger vessels. whereas private players are building bigger, faster ships (bigger ships are economical to run, thus profitable).
4. Top Management: there are two distinct classes in GRSE. Navy background and Non-Navy background. if one is of navy back ground, he can expect to grow upto the top level. if not, like most of us, you will be rotting after a particular point (no matter how much competent one is). navy people seem like to maintain such gaps and divides and sometimes it becomes very insulting (to my type of guys).
Thus most of the top managerial positions are held by retd. navy guys. they lack experience of working in an engineering company (that other engineer in a plant possesses) but they are entitled to hold top-decision making posts. and eventually make wrong decisions/ mis-judgements. and for a lower management level guy, they can’t be approached directly, no matter how serious or aggraveted. it will remind you of colonial era. britishers found this company in the end of nineteenth century, now they are gone. but they have left these ’sahibs’ (read dipsticks).
5. The Company/facilities: the company does not make any realisitc profits, all in papers, that too, very small. since it is under defence, it serves only Indian navy, and gets money from navy. no other reputed clients. lacks professionalism. infrastructure inside factory is very poor. a number of jobs are done by sub-contractors around kolkata. they are the most bogus sub-contractors one can ever imagine. no workmanship in the job. huge delays in ship building projects. sometimes more than double. lots of un-necessary wastes.
If the client were not navy, this company would have closed down decades ago. it is more like a workshop, rather than a factory or company (let alone corporate). I wonder, how this company was conferred with mini-ratna status (in the name of mini-ratna, it is a ’dhabba’!)
6. Remunerations: you’ll just be able to survive (since kolkata is cheapest city, I guess). no perks, other than basic, DA, HRA (that too, very paltry basic). There is an officer’s canteen, that supplies substandard meals to officers. non-officers’ canteen (known as hot-meal canteen, meant for workers, supervisers) is worst/most terrible. HRD guys don’t bother at all, some bad nexus I guess.
7. Conclusion: if you are a recent engineering graduate and not getting a job and haven’t still decided to comit suicide, join GRSE. It is next best possible thing.
CHEERS!