Kalandi Charan Panda, Civil Engineer

There's no substitute for hard work feels ex IITian, Kalandi Charan Panda. Currently with Hindustan Construction Company as General Manager (Operations), he has over 28 years of experience in this field.

Tell us a little bit about your career as a Civil Engineer

After completing M.Tech from IIT, Mumbai in 1972, I first worked as a site engineer. This first break is crucial as this is where you can put to test all that you have learnt in the classrooms - your ability to use equipments and resources. Then I worked on various projects ranging from ESSAR Steel Plant- Gujarat, Chamba Fertilisers - Rajasthan, Airport project - Qatar and other projects.

I always wanted to work on hydro projects and Hindustan Construction Company was recruiting people to work on new projects. I have been working with this company for the past few years. Here I'm currently working on Dhauli Ganga Hydro-electric project - UP, Natha Jhakri Power project - HP, Kurichu Dam project - Bhutan and Naraj Barge project - Orissa.

What is your job profile here?
My job involves making project reports, supervising the site work, dealing with casualties at the site and constraints if any. The bottom line is successfully completing the project using limited resources. I also arrange meetings with clients, discuss payment, arrange for resources, prepare documentation, etc.

What according to you are the qualities that make a good Civil Engineer?
A successful Civil Engineer should have a good concept of design and structure. You should also be ready to work for long hours. You need to be result oriented, have good leadership qualities, good communication skills and commitment towards work. But most of all you should not hesitate to voice your opinion or the work will suffer.

What do you like most about your job?
I love working on different projects at the same time. Each assignment is a challenge. It gives me immense pleasure when the organisation makes profits from my project. At the end of the day it feels great to see your creation.

You also get to learn a lot from your experiences and different postings. Above all this job enables you to work with people from different places and culture. And that's something I enjoy doing.

What are the difficulties you face in your job?
Every job has its own pros and cons. Civil Engineers have to deal with erratic work hours. So you have less time for yourself and your family. Consequently, your health also suffers due to long work hours.

This job is very stressful. It's not always easy to keep peace between the workers, management and the union. You have to keep track of unscrupulous elements from disturbing the smooth functioning of the project.

What are the misconceptions about this field?
A lot of people believe that Civil Engineers are not well paid. That's not true. The salary and perks differs from project to project. But it's definitely not bad. The salaries have really risen after the entry of MNCs in this sector.

The reason this job is not too famous with the younger generation is because they mostly prefer desk jobs and don't fancy being posted at remote places. Of course the comfort levels on the site are low as compared to white collared jobs. Colleges should counsel students to help dispel this notion of working on the site.

What are the job avenues for Civil Engineers?
There is no dearth of job opportunities in this field. And with multinational companies investing in India there is an increased demand for Civil Engineers. You could also work on projects in fields like agriculture, astrophysics, aviation, oceanography, railways, etc.

Do you have any tips for aspirants?
This is a very challenging field. You got to combine your theoretical knowledge with practical experience to bring out the best in the project. So working on site is very important.

If you want to be successful you should be ready to work in adverse conditions and remote places. I feel one should work hard and gain a fair amount of experience at a young age. Comforts will then follow naturally. There is no substitute to hard work.