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The '''Public Works Department''' was a government department that was responsible for buildings, roads, irrigation and railways.
Public Works in India, such as the construction of roads, water tank, etc. was originally conducted by the military. This started with the Pioneers and then by the Public Works Department of the [[Town Major's List]] ([[Bengal]] & [[Bombay]]) or the [[Effective Supernumeraries]] ([[Madras]]). Much of the responsibility for public works was then passed over to a special section of the [[Indian Civil Service]] in the mid-19th century. Later, the military once more took responsibility for much of the public works. *The Military Works branch detatched from the PWD and became the Military Works Service under the [[Indian Army ]] in 1899.
*Europeans employed on State [[Railways]] were usually on the strength of the PWD and therefore a civil servant (eligible for pension etc). NB in this context, if your ancestor turns up on a railway in India and the record contains "PWD" in the note or description, then this does not refer to "Permanent Way Department" (as it would in a UK context) but to the Public Works Department!
