Which department in IES is better for a civil engineer-railways or CPWD?

First of all, both Railways and CPWD are the two best departments for a Civil Engineer. But to choose one among them and decide which one is better, one has to consider certain factors. 

Benefits of Working in the CPWD Department-

Job Location: 

• The postings are usually in metropolitan cities like Delhi. 
• One can stay in Delhi and continue with their service. 
• Particularly in Delhi also because Delhi PWD lies in CPWD. 

Professional Career: 

• As compared to railways, CPWD officers are very much demanding in the private sector as well. 
• In case you leave the job, you have an option to get a good pay scale in the private sector as well. 

Reach and Contacts: 

Being a CPWD officer, you will have many high profile contacts as the complete VIP areas of Delhi (including Presidents, Prime Ministers, and IAS Officers) are maintained by CPWD.

Promotions:

• Whether you are working in any of the departments, promotions are the most motivating factor. 
• In the CPWD department, you can get promotions if you work hard. It is to be noted that you have to serve for several years and after that only you will be getting promotions. Among all the posts, Executive Engineer is the top post. 

A few other posts include: 

• Superintending Engineer
• Asst. Executive Engineer
• Chief Engineer
• Additional Director General
• SDG and DG

Financial Benefits: The CPWD Executive Engineers have much more financial powers than the Chief Engineers in Railways.

Work-Life Balance: Unlike Railways, in the CPWD department, you will have a balanced lifestyle. In railways, getting a single day of leave can sometimes be a big deal. Even during festival times, you may be called for work or reporting. 

Benefits of Working in the Railways Department-

Facilities: The bungalows allotted to the CPWD department professionals are not as big as those provided by the railway department. The railway officials are leveraged with many facilities like servants, vehicles, cars, swimming pools, and many more. 

Position: In railways, many of the employees are bifurcated, and some of them have to report to others, and this is how hierarchy goes on. So, if you are in a high position, you will have 400-600 people who will be reporting to you. While in the CPWD department, there are only a few Junior Engineers who will report to you if you are in a high position. 

Work Balance: There will never be a situation where you will find a lack of work as Railways have no other competition while in CPWD, the department has to compete with PSUs like NBCC to get work. 

So, if you will compare, both the departments have their own pros and cons. And definitely, you will never get all the perks in the same place. So, compare and choose wisely.