Department of Ocean Engineering & Naval Architecture is unique in that, for an internship, you need to give the choice of companies you want to intern in. And most companies in India that may take a naval architect or that needs the laboratories at IIT Kharagpur gives a number of trainees they can take in for that year. So, getting the intern/training was not the trouble.
Choosing the best training for your career was the trickiest part. In fact, in the days when others in my batch were looking for different companies that come to campus or applying off-campus or abroad in universities, I was just looking at one option. The option of finding a foreign
company that I could intern in. I knew it was a remote chance. But I tried nevertheless. Unsuccessfully.
I had already got a taste of the training I would have to undergo in a government shipyard, if I chose to do so. In my second year, I had gone to Mazagon Dock Limited (MDL) in Mumbai. The experience was disheartening, to say the least. I was constantly put down by the "knowing" remarks from some of the employees that I would leave the core discipline soon enough. When I had got into IIT KGP, I had had absolutely no clue what naval architecture meant. What I learnt from Google and Wikipedia after those initial days, had gotten me hooked to shipbuilding. Shipbuilding, as a discipline, was the amalgamation of the best technologies of different engineering disciplines. That, multi-faceted and economic thinking is required in a naval architect, is indisputable. Towards the end of my third sem, I was very happy that I wrote JEE and profusely thanked my first mentor who drove me to write it. But MDL showed me the typical snail speed in which any government body functions. Showed me how to delay projects & ask for extra money at the first mention of upgrading technology. Showed me why India is slow at accepting & assimilating new technology.
Throughout my third year, I was constantly reminded how India accounts for only 1% of shipbuilding and that Indian shipyards have a lot to learn and upgrade. Even the head of my department showed no effort whatsoever to make it look that we were getting into a benign industry. So you can understand my aversion to government shipyards when I filled up my priority list for an internship. To my chagrin, only one private shipyard had come this year for taking interns - ABG Shipyard Ltd. I filled up IRS (Indian Register of Shipping) - a high scorer's first option, and Cochin Shipyard (nearer my home and having an aircraft carrier in building). I was lucky enough to have no one, above my score, to opt for ABG. Especially so because my CG at the time of filling options was below 7. For a moment, I was elated. Then I remembered the statistics. 1%. I grew more and more apprehensive as I entered into Surat. I kept reminding myself that after interning at the biggest public sector shipyard, I am going to the biggest private sector shipyard in India, so it can't be too bad.
The locale around the shipyard and the gates of ABG did not helping the uneasy feelings. I got all set up for the training at the HR Office and was sent to the Design department for the first two weeks. I always liked talking to people with much more experience than me and the head of the department was kind enough to give me his time. But the best part was being accepted in the design office by other employees and being trusted with work that is done by them usually. That was what got me piqued and energetic to take up more and more work.
One of the first things they asked me to do was to update existing drawings as-fitted in the ship. This gave me a good idea of how to read production drawings and made making drawings in later stages all the more interesting. I got to utilize stuff I learnt during theory and laboratory classes at college to real-life issues. I know that is what internships are supposed to do for you. But, my last internship did nothing of the sort and hence, when I did get all of those, I was pleasantly surprised. In fact, there was one day during the internship that I stayed in the office from 8 in the morning to 9 in the evening just to witness an inclining experiment being carried out on a ship.
Another thing about ABG Shipyard is that it is located in Surat, Gujarat. Gujarat is a dry state. Also, it has absolutely no historic places nor many fun places for entertainment, for sight-seeing. I can imagine the sighs and the smiles that are turning up on your faces. Sighs from those who were thinking of ABG and smiles from those who weren't! But, I am happy that it was a dry state. Even if it was 2 months of no fun, it was worth it. Because I got to experience a true internship. A successful industrial training. Thank you, ABG.
