Jobs & Companies That Provide Free Accommodation In India

Many job seekers prefer to work in companies that provide free accommodation. One of the biggest reasons is that it makes it less problematic for new employees and helps them easily adjust to the new job or city.

Many jobs provide free housing in India. In both the private and government sector, few positions will give you this privilege. 

PSUs are another sector where you get guaranteed housing facilities. 

Different rules and regulations apply to accommodations under different sectors. 

Read on to know more. 

Government Sector, Private Sector, and PSUs

Each sector in India has its employee perks and benefits to provide with. These also depend on the level of seniority and employee proficiency. 

1. Government Sector

Government jobs in India have a craze of their own. At least 7 out of 10 graduates prepare for a government job entrance exam anytime after graduating. One of the sole reasons is that the central or state government will always give them housing facilities for posts that need them to move around the country.

2. Private Sector

As for the Private Sector, certain companies in India offer jobs that provide free housing during training. That said, not all companies provide them a free accomodation, and if they do, it is not an option for all employees. Some of these companies only offer accommodation until the training period. However, only a few big companies offer their employees housing as long as they employ them.

In the private sector, your experience and expertise can decide extra perks on the job. Few companies also provide leased accommodation if you are their employee. 

3. PSUs

Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs) is a sector where you can see the best of both worlds. Major companies like Oil India Limited (OIL), SAIL, State Bank Of India (SBI), and many others are categorized under PSUs. These companies provide residential quarters for their regular employees. 

For companies like OIL, ONGC, etc., residential townships are built for employees. Since the government owns around 50.1% to 99.9% shares of these companies, you can enjoy job security and other perks when working in a PSU. 

Private Sector Jobs That Provide Free Accommodation

Most job seekers looking to join tech companies and firms are fresh graduates relocating from a different place. However, getting free housing or accommodation while working for the private sector depends from company to company. 

The company ensures you have a place to stay for at least the training period. Some companies also allow you to extend your stay at the company-provided accommodation by a few weeks.

The quality of accommodation will also depend on your job location and the brand value/image of the company you are hired for. For instance, renowned companies like Google will provide you with a superior quality of accommodation compared to homegrown or new companies. Not only this, a few other benefits of working at Google or big companies in India are:

• Health insurance, including dental and vision insurance
• Help and support for employees suffering from health issues
• Access to wellness centers at the workplace.

As for other private companies, Thermax India is a well-known company that will give you accommodation. Apart from that, companies like L&T Infotech, Practo Technologies, and Infosys Mysore will provide you with accommodation during training periods and extend it till the time you are working for them. 

Government Sector Jobs With Free Accommodation

Almost 80% of government jobs in India provide accommodation. When the government cannot find suitable accommodation, they provide a Housing Rent Allowance (HRA) besides paying you the salary. 

With HRA, you can find suitable housing accommodation of your choice and find it easy to travel to and from your workplace. 

People prefer Government Sector jobs over the private sector because these jobs provide a sense of security. With the 8th Pay Commission coming out in a few years, there is a possibility of more improvements, including HRA. 

However, not all employees in the government sector are entitled to HRA or govt accommodation. If you are serving in a post where you have to travel frequently, you can avail of this free accommodation opportunity. Accommodation is provided to all employees hired for higher posts under the central government, such as civil service officers or Army officials. 

Here are a few posts under the central government where you can avail of free housing accommodation:

1. Railways

Indian Railways is one of the largest employers in the country, and you can enjoy many benefits of being a central government employee. 

Working for Railways includes many perks such as getting Travel Allowances- free family travel passes to any part of the country, Pension, Death Cum Retirement Gratuity, Compensation In case of Death/Disablement, Post-retirement Complimentary Passes, etc.

Railway employees are given accommodation in railway quarters in railway colonies. These colonies are close to railway headquarters ad offices across the country. Plus, these communities are designed for employee living. 

You might be glad to know that some of these structures have also been there since the British period!

2. Civil Services

Civil Services are one of the country’s premier and most respected job profiles. Civil Servants get a lot of admiration in society and are treated very well.

Civil servants are Group A officers, and some are categorized under Group B. The central and state government employs both. When you crack the UPSC examination and become a civil officer, people see you as the country’s top brass and expect a lot from you. 

Even the government ensures you are taken care of well by ensuring you get quality accommodation wherever you get postings. You also get medical benefits and a travel allowance during your service. In some cases, the government even provides you with a transport allowance. 

You can get different types of accommodations in civil services. If you are an IAS officer, you are allotted a bungalow. If you are an IRS officer, you get a flat in one of the metro cities. 

If you choose to stay in your lodgings, or the government can’t find proper accommodation, you get a suitable HRA instead.

3. Armed Forces

The Armed Forces are one of the most respected professions in the country. The government ensures that your family is well provided for when you’re an Armed Forces member. 

As an Armed Forces employee, you get the following facilities:

• The best housing facilities in armed forces quarters.  
• Free medical benefits.
• Tax-free products at the CSD Canteen.
• Insurance benefits, travel allowances, and much more.

The residential quarters given to armed forces employees are in gated communities, and not all civilians are given a permit to enter those areas. At least not without proper checking. 

Apart from that, if you are an employee in the MES (Military Engineering Services), you are eligible for availing of these benefits. As an MES employee, you are also eligible to get free accommodation to residential quarters from the central government. 

4. Government School Teachers

Teaching is a great profession. Moreover, it becomes the best when you are offered a higher salary package. 

Besides getting a decent salary, a school teacher gets housing facilities from the govt working in any state government school or Kendriya Vidyalaya (KV). In India, the government (both state and central) ensures that all employees working in a government school can avail of this benefit. 

Sometimes, as a government school teacher, you can also get postings to remote places. However, you can remain stress-free as the burden of finding a place to live is already taken care of.

Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs)

You might have heard elders saying that a job in a PSU in India is almost equal to a government job. 

A PSU (Public Sector Undertaking) means a body or company that is: 

• Only partly owned by the government.  
• The govt might own 50.1% to 99.9% shares of it. 

Some of the PSUs are the State Bank of India (SBI), Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC), Oil India Limited (OIL), Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL), etc. 

PSU jobs are great in terms of allowances and work profiles. Many graduates look forward to getting into one of the PSUs every year. 

These PSUs conduct their exams to employ youngsters. You have to work very hard if you wish to get a job in such a sector. 

Here are some of the PSU companies that provide jobs with free accommodation :

1. State Bank Of India (SBI)

As an SBI employee, you are liable to get accommodation. It doesn’t matter if you are a clerk at SBI; you are eligible to get HRA from the bank. 

SBI provides free accommodation to all its officers. If the bank can’t find accommodation for you, you’ll get accommodation on a lease basis. 

And the best part about this government bank is that you are eligible to enjoy these perks from the first day of joining. Even as a probationary officer, you are eligible for the same. 

SBI employees get posted all over the country. Thus, the bank makes sure that all employees get good housing facilities. 

2. Oil India Limited (OIL)

OIL is another major company that engineers are eager to work with. The main reason is the work profile and facilities provided by OIL are excellent, which makes it an ideal company for many job seekers. 

Major bodies like OIL mostly provide accommodations in their townships. It helps employees stay close to the workplace and facilitates commuting. 

Sometimes, OIL also provides accommodation on the lease. Apart from that, as an OIL employee, you can also avail of HRA if you don’t take up their housing facilities.

3. Bharat Heavy Electricals (BHEL)

Many engineering students aspire to work for BHEL after graduation. It is another PSU that is highly regarded in India. 

Like other PSUs, you are entitled to free accommodation as an employee in BHEL. If you are married, you might get quarters to stay in. If you are not given suitable accommodation, you can avail of HRA in that regard. 

You can also get leased accommodation from the company, which will recover 10% of your Basic Pay from the salary.

Apart from these, other PSU giants also grant accommodation to employees at very low rates or free of cost. Seeing the increasing demand for PSU jobs, the competition is also getting fierce, along with the selection process.

Conclusion:

In a country as big as India, job opportunities are ample and varied. There are different types of jobs in different sectors that people want to get their hands into and learn.

There is always some vacancy in one or the other sector advertised. It makes youngsters excited to start work and explore these jobs. 

The only problem? Accommodation.

Especially when you are asked to work in a remote country. 

Companies are trusted to give proper accommodation to employees from the first day on the job. Until you are no longer an employee, the government or PSUs can take care of your housing issues. 

The accommodations in the government sector are much better than the housing facilities in the private sector. However, just like a work profile, this is not a big issue when you are sure what sector you want to enter. 

Housing and accommodation can play a role in your job preferences too. However, you should look forward to the kind of job that you want to be in rather than anything else.