West Bengal Transport Minister Arjun Singh inspected the troubled Shalimar Works Limited shipbuilding facility in Howrah after employees raised concerns over cancelled orders, unpaid wages and the deteriorating condition of the state-owned industrial asset.
The facility is located along the Hooghly river on Foreshore Road and operates under the state government’s transport department. According to the report, Shalimar Works has not received shipbuilding orders at the earlier rate in recent years, while several contracts have reportedly been cancelled. The resulting decline in work has left the facility in a distressed condition.
Employees approached the transport minister on Wednesday seeking steps to revive the factory and improve its infrastructure. Singh visited the site on Thursday, inspected the premises and later held discussions with the management. The inspection followed his decision to assess the condition of the facility personally after meeting employees.
“Currently, no work is taking place. The entire system was ruined by the previous government. We will use it in the future,” Singh said after the inspection, according to Sangbad Pratidin. He described the shipyard as an asset of the West Bengal government and local residents and said the state should make better use of it.
Employees said the facility’s decline has also created a financial problem for its workforce. Ravi Bardhan, an employee, alleged that the authorities were no longer paying sufficient attention to the factory, that several shipbuilding orders had been cancelled and that employees were owed lakhs of rupees in arrears. He said the workers had placed their demands before the minister, who listened to their concerns and assured them that the situation would improve.
The report did not provide details of the cancelled orders, the total wage arrears, the number of employees affected or any approved plan for restarting production. The facility’s management also declined to comment on the matter.
The transport minister said further action would follow his assessment of the site. No specific revival package, project timeline or new shipbuilding order was announced during the inspection.
