diff --git a/.github/workflows/build-consumer-service.yml b/.github/workflows/build-consumer-service.yml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..bc323b0
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.github/workflows/build-consumer-service.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,126 @@
+name: Build and Push Consumer Service Docker Image
+
+on:
+  push:
+    branches:
+      - main
+      - develop
+    paths:
+      - 'consumer-service/**'
+      - '.github/workflows/build-consumer-service.yml'
+  pull_request:
+    branches:
+      - main
+      - develop
+    paths:
+      - 'consumer-service/**'
+  workflow_dispatch:
+    inputs:
+      version:
+        description: 'Docker image version'
+        required: false
+        default: 'latest'
+
+env:
+  REGISTRY: ghcr.io
+  IMAGE_NAME: ${{ github.repository }}/consumer-service
+
+jobs:
+  build:
+    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    
+    permissions:
+      contents: read
+      packages: write
+
+    steps:
+      - name: Checkout code
+        uses: actions/checkout@v4
+
+      - name: Set up Docker Buildx
+        uses: docker/setup-buildx-action@v2
+
+      - name: Log in to Container Registry
+        if: github.event_name != 'pull_request'
+        uses: docker/login-action@v2
+        with:
+          registry: ${{ env.REGISTRY }}
+          username: ${{ github.actor }}
+          password: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}
+
+      - name: Extract metadata
+        id: meta
+        uses: docker/metadata-action@v4
+        with:
+          images: ${{ env.REGISTRY }}/${{ env.IMAGE_NAME }}
+          tags: |
+            type=ref,event=branch
+            type=sha,prefix={{branch}}-
+            type=semver,pattern={{version}}
+            type=semver,pattern={{major}}.{{minor}}
+            type=raw,value=latest,enable={{is_default_branch}}
+
+      - name: Build and push Docker image
+        uses: docker/build-push-action@v4
+        with:
+          context: ./consumer-service
+          file: ./consumer-service/Dockerfile.prod
+          push: ${{ github.event_name != 'pull_request' }}
+          tags: ${{ steps.meta.outputs.tags }}
+          labels: ${{ steps.meta.outputs.labels }}
+          build-args: |
+            VERSION=${{ github.sha }}
+            BUILD_TIME=$(date -u +'%Y-%m-%dT%H:%M:%SZ')
+            GIT_COMMIT=${{ github.sha }}
+
+      - name: Image digest
+        run: echo ${{ steps.docker_build.outputs.digest }}
+
+  test:
+    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    
+    steps:
+      - name: Checkout code
+        uses: actions/checkout@v4
+
+      - name: Set up Go
+        uses: actions/setup-go@v4
+        with:
+          go-version: '1.21'
+
+      - name: Download dependencies
+        run: |
+          cd consumer-service
+          go mod download
+
+      - name: Run tests
+        run: |
+          cd consumer-service
+          go test -v ./...
+
+      - name: Run linter
+        uses: golangci/golangci-lint-action@v3
+        with:
+          working-directory: consumer-service
+          version: latest
+
+  scan:
+    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    if: github.event_name != 'pull_request'
+
+    steps:
+      - name: Checkout code
+        uses: actions/checkout@v4
+
+      - name: Run Trivy vulnerability scanner
+        uses: aquasecurity/trivy-action@master
+        with:
+          scan-type: 'fs'
+          scan-ref: 'consumer-service'
+          format: 'sarif'
+          output: 'trivy-results.sarif'
+
+      - name: Upload Trivy results to GitHub Security tab
+        uses: github/codeql-action/upload-sarif@v2
+        with:
+          sarif_file: 'trivy-results.sarif'
diff --git a/consumer-service/.dockerignore b/consumer-service/.dockerignore
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..e5afc63
--- /dev/null
+++ b/consumer-service/.dockerignore
@@ -0,0 +1,64 @@
+# Git files
+.git
+.gitignore
+.gitattributes
+
+# IDEs and Editors
+.vscode
+.idea
+*.swp
+*.swo
+*~
+.DS_Store
+.env.local
+.env.*.local
+
+# Build and test artifacts
+.bin
+*.o
+*.a
+*.so
+*.exe
+*.test
+coverage.out
+*.coverprofile
+
+# Temporary files
+tmp/
+temp/
+*.tmp
+
+# Docker files
+Dockerfile
+Dockerfile.*
+docker-compose*.yml
+.dockerignore
+.docker
+
+# CI/CD
+.github
+.gitlab-ci.yml
+.circleci
+
+# Documentation
+*.md
+docs/
+README.md
+
+# Development files
+Makefile
+makefile
+scripts/
+*.sh
+
+# Database
+*.db
+*.sqlite
+*.sqlite3
+
+# Logs
+*.log
+logs/
+
+# OS files
+Thumbs.db
diff --git a/consumer-service/Dockerfile b/consumer-service/Dockerfile
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..3a4c3ac
--- /dev/null
+++ b/consumer-service/Dockerfile
@@ -0,0 +1,50 @@
+# Stage 1: Builder
+FROM golang:1.26-alpine AS builder
+
+# Install build dependencies
+RUN apk add --no-cache git ca-certificates tzdata openssh-client
+
+WORKDIR /app
+
+# Configure Git for private repos
+RUN git config --global url."git@github.com:".insteadOf "https://github.com/"
+
+# Copy SSH key for private repo access (build arg)
+ARG SSH_PRIVATE_KEY
+RUN mkdir -p /root/.ssh && \
+    echo "${SSH_PRIVATE_KEY}" > /root/.ssh/id_rsa && \
+    chmod 600 /root/.ssh/id_rsa && \
+    ssh-keyscan -H github.com >> /root/.ssh/known_hosts
+
+# Copy go mod files
+COPY go.mod go.sum ./
+
+# Download dependencies
+RUN go mod download
+
+# Copy source code
+COPY . .
+
+# Build the application
+RUN CGO_ENABLED=0 GOOS=linux go build -a -installsuffix cgo -o consumer-service .
+
+# Stage 2: Runtime
+FROM alpine:3.18
+
+RUN apk --no-cache add ca-certificates tzdata
+
+RUN addgroup -g 1000 appuser && \
+    adduser -D -u 1000 -G appuser appuser
+
+WORKDIR /home/appuser
+
+COPY --from=builder --chown=appuser:appuser /app/consumer-service .
+
+USER appuser
+
+EXPOSE 50051
+
+HEALTHCHECK --interval=30s --timeout=3s --start-period=5s --retries=3 \
+    CMD nc -z localhost 50051 || exit 1
+
+CMD ["./consumer-service"]
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/consumer-service/Dockerfile.prod b/consumer-service/Dockerfile.prod
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..037417e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/consumer-service/Dockerfile.prod
@@ -0,0 +1,60 @@
+# Stage 1: Builder
+FROM golang:1.26-alpine AS builder
+
+ARG VERSION=dev
+ARG BUILD_TIME
+ARG GIT_COMMIT
+
+# Install build dependencies
+RUN apk add --no-cache git ca-certificates tzdata make
+
+WORKDIR /app
+
+# Copy go mod files
+COPY go.mod go.sum ./
+
+# Download dependencies (cached layer)
+RUN go mod download
+
+# Copy source code
+COPY . .
+
+# Build with optimizations
+ARG TARGETARCH
+
+RUN CGO_ENABLED=0 GOOS=linux GOARCH=$TARGETARCH go build \
+    -a \
+    -installsuffix cgo \
+    -o consumer-service .
+
+# Stage 2: Runtime
+FROM alpine:3.18
+
+# Install minimal runtime dependencies
+RUN apk --no-cache add ca-certificates tzdata curl
+
+# Create non-root user for security
+RUN addgroup -g 1000 appuser && \
+    adduser -D -u 1000 -G appuser appuser
+
+WORKDIR /home/appuser
+
+# Copy binary from builder
+COPY --from=builder --chown=appuser:appuser /app/consumer-service .
+
+# Copy any config files if needed
+# COPY --from=builder --chown=appuser:appuser /app/config ./config
+
+USER appuser
+
+# Expose gRPC port
+EXPOSE 50051
+
+# Metadata
+LABEL org.opencontainers.image.title="HireMind Consumer Service"
+LABEL org.opencontainers.image.description="gRPC service for interview management"
+LABEL org.opencontainers.image.version="${VERSION}"
+
+
+# Run the application
+CMD ["./consumer-service"]
diff --git a/consumer-service/Makefile b/consumer-service/Makefile
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..3c92a0e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/consumer-service/Makefile
@@ -0,0 +1,115 @@
+.PHONY: help build run stop clean logs compose-up compose-down compose-logs docker-build docker-push version
+
+# Variables
+SERVICE_NAME=consumer-service
+DOCKER_REGISTRY=docker.io
+DOCKER_IMAGE=$(DOCKER_REGISTRY)/hiremind/$(SERVICE_NAME)
+VERSION?=latest
+BUILD_TIME=$(shell date -u +'%Y-%m-%dT%H:%M:%SZ')
+GIT_COMMIT=$(shell git rev-parse --short HEAD)
+
+help: ## Display this help message
+	@echo "HireMind Consumer Service - Docker & Development Commands"
+	@echo ""
+	@grep -E '^[a-zA-Z_-]+:.*?## .*$$' $(MAKEFILE_LIST) | sort | awk 'BEGIN {FS = ":.*?## "}; {printf "\033[36m%-20s\033[0m %s\n", $$1, $$2}'
+
+# Docker Commands
+build: ## Build Docker image
+	docker build \
+		-t $(DOCKER_IMAGE):$(VERSION) \
+		-t $(DOCKER_IMAGE):latest \
+		--build-arg VERSION=$(VERSION) \
+		--build-arg BUILD_TIME=$(BUILD_TIME) \
+		--build-arg GIT_COMMIT=$(GIT_COMMIT) \
+		-f Dockerfile .
+
+build-prod: ## Build production Docker image
+	docker build \
+		-t $(DOCKER_IMAGE):$(VERSION)-prod \
+		--build-arg VERSION=$(VERSION) \
+		--build-arg BUILD_TIME=$(BUILD_TIME) \
+		--build-arg GIT_COMMIT=$(GIT_COMMIT) \
+		-f Dockerfile.prod .
+
+run: ## Run Docker container
+	docker run -it --rm \
+		--env-file .env \
+		-p 50051:50051 \
+		$(DOCKER_IMAGE):$(VERSION)
+
+docker-push: ## Push Docker image to registry
+	docker push $(DOCKER_IMAGE):$(VERSION)
+	docker push $(DOCKER_IMAGE):latest
+
+# Docker Compose Commands
+compose-up: ## Start services with docker-compose
+	docker-compose up -d
+
+compose-down: ## Stop services with docker-compose
+	docker-compose down
+
+compose-logs: ## View docker-compose logs
+	docker-compose logs -f
+
+compose-logs-service: ## View consumer-service logs only
+	docker-compose logs -f consumer-service
+
+compose-logs-db: ## View postgres logs only
+	docker-compose logs -f postgres
+
+compose-ps: ## Show running containers
+	docker-compose ps
+
+compose-rebuild: ## Rebuild container and start
+	docker-compose up -d --build
+
+# Development Commands
+dev: ## Run service in development mode
+	go run main.go
+
+test: ## Run tests
+	go test -v ./...
+
+test-coverage: ## Run tests with coverage
+	go test -cover ./... -out=coverage.out
+	go tool cover -html=coverage.out
+
+lint: ## Run linter
+	golangci-lint run
+
+fmt: ## Format code
+	go fmt ./...
+
+clean: ## Clean build artifacts
+	rm -f $(SERVICE_NAME)
+	docker image prune -f
+
+# Database Commands
+db-migrate-up: ## Run database migrations
+	docker-compose exec postgres psql -U hiremind_user -d hiremind_db -c "SELECT * FROM migrations;"
+
+db-shell: ## Open database shell
+	docker-compose exec postgres psql -U hiremind_user -d hiremind_db
+
+# Utility Commands
+version: ## Display build information
+	@echo "Service: $(SERVICE_NAME)"
+	@echo "Version: $(VERSION)"
+	@echo "Docker Image: $(DOCKER_IMAGE)"
+	@echo "Build Time: $(BUILD_TIME)"
+	@echo "Git Commit: $(GIT_COMMIT)"
+
+health-check: ## Check service health
+	curl -f http://localhost:50051/health || echo "Service not healthy"
+
+logs-follow: ## Follow application logs
+	tail -f logs/app.log
+
+image-size: ## Show Docker image size
+	docker images $(DOCKER_IMAGE)
+
+deps: ## Download Go dependencies
+	go mod download
+	go mod tidy
+
+.DEFAULT_GOAL := help
diff --git a/consumer-service/config/config.go b/consumer-service/config/config.go
index 154722b..910390e 100644
--- a/consumer-service/config/config.go
+++ b/consumer-service/config/config.go
@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 package config
 
 import (
+	"errors"
 	"log"
 	"os"
 
@@ -11,20 +12,46 @@ type Config struct {
 	DBReadURL  string
 	DBWriteURL string
 	GRPCPort   string
+	RedisHost  string
+	RedisAddr  string
+	JWTSecret  string
+	Env        string
+	LogLevel   string
 }
 
-var AppConfig Config
-
-func LoadConfig() {
-
-	err := godotenv.Load()
-	if err != nil {
-		log.Fatal("failed to load env")
+func LoadConfig() (*Config, error) {
+	// Only load .env file if it exists (for local development)
+	// In Docker, environment variables are set via docker-compose.yml
+	if _, err := os.Stat(".env"); err == nil {
+		godotenv.Load()
 	}
 
-	AppConfig = Config{
+	cfg := &Config{
 		DBReadURL:  os.Getenv("DB_READ_URL"),
 		DBWriteURL: os.Getenv("DB_WRITE_URL"),
 		GRPCPort:   os.Getenv("GRPC_PORT"),
+		RedisHost:  os.Getenv("REDIS_HOST"),
+		RedisAddr:  os.Getenv("REDIS_ADDR"),
+		JWTSecret:  os.Getenv("JWT_SECRET"),
+		Env:        os.Getenv("ENV"),
+		LogLevel:   os.Getenv("LOG_LEVEL"),
 	}
+
+	// Validate required fields
+	if cfg.DBReadURL == "" || cfg.DBWriteURL == "" {
+		log.Println("failed to load env: missing database URLs")
+		return nil, errors.New("missing required environment variables")
+	}
+
+	if cfg.GRPCPort == "" {
+		log.Println("failed to load env: missing GRPC_PORT")
+		return nil, errors.New("missing GRPC_PORT")
+	}
+
+	if cfg.JWTSecret == "" {
+		log.Println("failed to load env: missing JWT_SECRET")
+		return nil, errors.New("missing JWT_SECRET")
+	}
+
+	return cfg, nil
 }
diff --git a/consumer-service/consumer-service b/consumer-service/consumer-service
index d678ac0..5bc75eb 100755
Binary files a/consumer-service/consumer-service and b/consumer-service/consumer-service differ
diff --git a/consumer-service/docker-compose.dev.yml b/consumer-service/docker-compose.dev.yml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..dc7f1a9
--- /dev/null
+++ b/consumer-service/docker-compose.dev.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,73 @@
+version: '3.8'
+
+services:
+  postgres:
+    image: postgres:15-alpine
+    container_name: hiremind_postgres_dev
+    environment:
+      POSTGRES_USER: hiremind_user
+      POSTGRES_PASSWORD: hiremind_password
+      POSTGRES_DB: hiremind_db
+    ports:
+      - "5432:5432"
+    volumes:
+      - postgres_data:/var/lib/postgresql/data
+    healthcheck:
+      test: [ "CMD-SHELL", "pg_isready -U hiremind_user" ]
+      interval: 10s
+      timeout: 5s
+      retries: 5
+    networks:
+      - hiremind_dev_network
+
+  redis:
+    image: redis:7-alpine
+    container_name: hiremind_redis_dev
+    ports:
+      - "6379:6379"
+    volumes:
+      - redis_data:/data
+    healthcheck:
+      test: [ "CMD", "redis-cli", "ping" ]
+      interval: 10s
+      timeout: 5s
+      retries: 5
+    networks:
+      - hiremind_dev_network
+
+  consumer-service:
+    build:
+      context: .
+      dockerfile: Dockerfile
+    container_name: hiremind_consumer_service_dev
+    environment:
+      - PORT=50051
+      - DB_HOST=postgres
+      - DB_PORT=5432
+      - DB_USER=hiremind_user
+      - DB_PASSWORD=hiremind_password
+      - DB_NAME=hiremind_db
+      - DB_SSLMODE=disable
+      - REDIS_HOST=redis
+      - REDIS_PORT=6379
+      - REDIS_DB=0
+      - LOG_LEVEL=debug
+    ports:
+      - "50051:50051"
+    depends_on:
+      postgres:
+        condition: service_healthy
+      redis:
+        condition: service_healthy
+    networks:
+      - hiremind_dev_network
+    restart: unless-stopped
+
+volumes:
+  postgres_data:
+  redis_data:
+
+
+networks:
+  hiremind_dev_network:
+    driver: bridge
diff --git a/consumer-service/docker-compose.yml b/consumer-service/docker-compose.yml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..06f81aa
--- /dev/null
+++ b/consumer-service/docker-compose.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,41 @@
+services:
+  redis:
+    image: redis:7-alpine
+    container_name: hiremind-redis
+    ports:
+      - "6379:6379"
+    networks:
+      - hiremind-network
+    healthcheck:
+      test: [ "CMD", "redis-cli", "ping" ]
+      interval: 10s
+      timeout: 5s
+      retries: 5
+    restart: unless-stopped
+
+  consumer-service:
+    build:
+      context: .
+      dockerfile: Dockerfile
+    container_name: hiremind-consumer-service
+    volumes:
+      - ./.env:/.env:ro
+    env_file:
+      - .env
+    ports:
+      - "50051:50051"
+    depends_on:
+      redis:
+        condition: service_healthy
+    networks:
+      - hiremind-network
+    restart: unless-stopped
+    healthcheck:
+      test: [ "CMD", "nc", "-z", "localhost", "50051" ]
+      interval: 30s
+      timeout: 3s
+      retries: 3
+
+networks:
+  hiremind-network:
+    driver: bridge
diff --git a/consumer-service/main.go b/consumer-service/main.go
index 03c9598..8117d05 100644
--- a/consumer-service/main.go
+++ b/consumer-service/main.go
@@ -3,7 +3,6 @@ package main
 import (
 	"log"
 	"net"
-	"os"
 
 	"consumer-service/config"
 	"consumer-service/db"
@@ -23,11 +22,14 @@ import (
 
 func main() {
 
-	config.LoadConfig()
+	cfg, err := config.LoadConfig()
+	if err != nil {
+		log.Fatalf("Failed to load config: %v", err)
+	}
 
-	err := db.InitDB(
-		config.AppConfig.DBReadURL,
-		config.AppConfig.DBWriteURL,
+	err = db.InitDB(
+		cfg.DBReadURL,
+		cfg.DBWriteURL,
 	)
 
 	if err != nil {
@@ -35,12 +37,12 @@ func main() {
 	}
 
 	rdb := redis.NewClient(&redis.Options{
-		Addr: os.Getenv("REDIS_ADDR"),
+		Addr: cfg.RedisAddr,
 	})
 
 	redisWrapper := redisclient.NewClient(rdb)
 
-	jwtSecret := os.Getenv("JWT_SECRET")
+	jwtSecret := cfg.JWTSecret
 	if jwtSecret == "" {
 		log.Fatal("JWT_SECRET not set")
 	}
diff --git a/consumer-service/scripts/docker-build.sh b/consumer-service/scripts/docker-build.sh
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..871bd9c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/consumer-service/scripts/docker-build.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,135 @@
+#!/bin/bash
+# Docker build script for Consumer Service
+
+set -e
+
+# Colors for output
+RED='\033[0;31m'
+GREEN='\033[0;32m'
+YELLOW='\033[1;33m'
+NC='\033[0m' # No Color
+
+# Configuration
+SERVICE_NAME="consumer-service"
+DOCKER_REGISTRY="${DOCKER_REGISTRY:-docker.io}"
+DOCKER_IMAGE="${DOCKER_REGISTRY}/hiremind/${SERVICE_NAME}"
+VERSION="${VERSION:-latest}"
+BUILD_TIME=$(date -u +'%Y-%m-%dT%H:%M:%SZ')
+GIT_COMMIT=$(git rev-parse --short HEAD)
+DOCKERFILE="${DOCKERFILE:-Dockerfile}"
+PUSH="${PUSH:-false}"
+NO_CACHE="${NO_CACHE:-false}"
+
+# Help function
+show_help() {
+    cat << EOF
+Usage: $0 [OPTIONS]
+
+Docker build script for $SERVICE_NAME
+
+OPTIONS:
+    -v, --version VERSION       Docker image version (default: latest)
+    -r, --registry REGISTRY     Docker registry (default: docker.io)
+    -f, --file DOCKERFILE       Dockerfile to use (default: Dockerfile)
+    -p, --push                  Push image to registry after building
+    --no-cache                  Build without using cache
+    -h, --help                  Show this help message
+
+EXAMPLES:
+    $0                          # Build with default settings
+    $0 -v 1.0.0                 # Build version 1.0.0
+    $0 -v 1.0.0 --push          # Build and push version 1.0.0
+    $0 -f Dockerfile.prod -p    # Build production image and push
+
+EOF
+}
+
+# Parse arguments
+while [[ $# -gt 0 ]]; do
+    case $1 in
+        -v|--version)
+            VERSION="$2"
+            shift 2
+            ;;
+        -r|--registry)
+            DOCKER_REGISTRY="$2"
+            DOCKER_IMAGE="${DOCKER_REGISTRY}/hiremind/${SERVICE_NAME}"
+            shift 2
+            ;;
+        -f|--file)
+            DOCKERFILE="$2"
+            shift 2
+            ;;
+        -p|--push)
+            PUSH="true"
+            shift
+            ;;
+        --no-cache)
+            NO_CACHE="true"
+            shift
+            ;;
+        -h|--help)
+            show_help
+            exit 0
+            ;;
+        *)
+            echo -e "${RED}Unknown option: $1${NC}"
+            show_help
+            exit 1
+            ;;
+    esac
+done
+
+# Validate Dockerfile exists
+if [ ! -f "$DOCKERFILE" ]; then
+    echo -e "${RED}Error: Dockerfile not found: $DOCKERFILE${NC}"
+    exit 1
+fi
+
+# Build image
+echo -e "${YELLOW}Building Docker image...${NC}"
+echo "Image: ${DOCKER_IMAGE}:${VERSION}"
+echo "Dockerfile: $DOCKERFILE"
+echo "Build Time: $BUILD_TIME"
+echo "Git Commit: $GIT_COMMIT"
+echo ""
+
+BUILD_ARGS="--build-arg VERSION=${VERSION} --build-arg BUILD_TIME=${BUILD_TIME} --build-arg GIT_COMMIT=${GIT_COMMIT}"
+
+if [ "$NO_CACHE" = "true" ]; then
+    BUILD_ARGS="$BUILD_ARGS --no-cache"
+fi
+
+docker build \
+    $BUILD_ARGS \
+    -t "${DOCKER_IMAGE}:${VERSION}" \
+    -t "${DOCKER_IMAGE}:latest" \
+    -f "$DOCKERFILE" \
+    .
+
+if [ $? -eq 0 ]; then
+    echo -e "${GREEN}✓ Build successful!${NC}"
+    
+    # Display image info
+    echo ""
+    echo "Image details:"
+    docker images "${DOCKER_IMAGE}"
+    
+    # Push if requested
+    if [ "$PUSH" = "true" ]; then
+        echo ""
+        echo -e "${YELLOW}Pushing Docker image...${NC}"
+        docker push "${DOCKER_IMAGE}:${VERSION}"
+        docker push "${DOCKER_IMAGE}:latest"
+        
+        if [ $? -eq 0 ]; then
+            echo -e "${GREEN}✓ Push successful!${NC}"
+        else
+            echo -e "${RED}✗ Push failed!${NC}"
+            exit 1
+        fi
+    fi
+else
+    echo -e "${RED}✗ Build failed!${NC}"
+    exit 1
+fi
diff --git a/consumer-service/scripts/setup.sh b/consumer-service/scripts/setup.sh
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..56ba54b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/consumer-service/scripts/setup.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,54 @@
+#!/bin/bash
+# Setup script for Docker development environment
+
+set -e
+
+# Colors
+GREEN='\033[0;32m'
+BLUE='\033[0;34m'
+NC='\033[0m'
+
+echo -e "${BLUE}🚀 Setting up Docker development environment...${NC}"
+
+# Check if Docker is installed
+if ! command -v docker &> /dev/null; then
+    echo "Docker is not installed. Please install Docker Desktop."
+    exit 1
+fi
+
+# Copy .env.example to .env if it doesn't exist
+if [ ! -f .env ]; then
+    echo -e "${BLUE}Creating .env file from .env.example...${NC}"
+    cp .env.example .env
+    echo -e "${GREEN}✓ .env created${NC}"
+else
+    echo -e "${GREEN}✓ .env already exists${NC}"
+fi
+
+# Make scripts executable
+echo -e "${BLUE}Making scripts executable...${NC}"
+chmod +x scripts/*.sh
+
+# Build Docker image
+echo -e "${BLUE}Building Docker image...${NC}"
+make build
+
+# Start services
+echo -e "${BLUE}Starting services with docker-compose...${NC}"
+make compose-up
+
+# Wait for services to be healthy
+echo -e "${BLUE}Waiting for services to be healthy...${NC}"
+sleep 5
+
+# Check service status
+echo -e "${BLUE}Checking service status...${NC}"
+docker-compose ps
+
+echo -e "${GREEN}✓ Setup complete!${NC}"
+echo ""
+echo "Next steps:"
+echo "  - View logs: make compose-logs"
+echo "  - Stop services: make compose-down"
+echo "  - Run tests: make test"
+echo "  - View more commands: make help"
diff --git a/consumer-service/services/interviewService/utils.go b/consumer-service/services/interviewService/utils.go
index 82f42e1..dc333bf 100644
--- a/consumer-service/services/interviewService/utils.go
+++ b/consumer-service/services/interviewService/utils.go
@@ -21,7 +21,7 @@ func getValidateGetInterviewsRequest(ctx context.Context, req GetInterviewsReque
 	if req.UserID != "" && req.UserID != authenticatedUserID {
 		return GetInterviewsRequest{}, errorv2.BadRequest.New("user_id does not match authenticated user")
 	}
-	req.UserID = authenticatedUserID
+	req.UserID = authenticatedUserID // user from request to be fixed
 
 	if err := common.ValidateUUID(req.UserID); err != nil {
 		return GetInterviewsRequest{}, errorv2.BadRequest.Wrap(err, "invalid user_id")
diff --git a/gateway-service/.dockerignore b/gateway-service/.dockerignore
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..f418574
--- /dev/null
+++ b/gateway-service/.dockerignore
@@ -0,0 +1,61 @@
+# Git files
+.git
+.gitignore
+.gitattributes
+
+# IDEs and Editors
+.vscode
+.idea
+*.swp
+*.swo
+*~
+.DS_Store
+.env
+.env.local
+.env.*.local
+
+# Build and test artifacts
+.bin
+gateway-service
+*.o
+*.a
+*.so
+*.exe
+*.test
+coverage.out
+*.coverprofile
+
+# Temporary files
+tmp/
+temp/
+*.tmp
+
+# Docker files
+Dockerfile
+Dockerfile.*
+docker-compose*.yml
+.dockerignore
+.docker
+
+# CI/CD
+.github
+.gitlab-ci.yml
+.circleci
+
+# Documentation
+*.md
+docs/
+README.md
+
+# Development files
+Makefile
+makefile
+scripts/
+*.sh
+
+# Logs
+*.log
+logs/
+
+# OS files
+Thumbs.db
diff --git a/gateway-service/Dockerfile b/gateway-service/Dockerfile
index 829ca09..8caed65 100644
--- a/gateway-service/Dockerfile
+++ b/gateway-service/Dockerfile
@@ -1,8 +1,21 @@
-# Build stage
-FROM golang:1.22-alpine AS builder
+# Stage 1: Builder
+FROM golang:1.26-alpine AS builder
+
+# Install build dependencies
+RUN apk add --no-cache git ca-certificates tzdata openssh-client
 
 WORKDIR /app
 
+# Configure Git for private repos
+RUN git config --global url."git@github.com:".insteadOf "https://github.com/"
+
+# Copy SSH key for private repo access (build arg)
+ARG SSH_PRIVATE_KEY
+RUN mkdir -p /root/.ssh && \
+    echo "${SSH_PRIVATE_KEY}" > /root/.ssh/id_rsa && \
+    chmod 600 /root/.ssh/id_rsa && \
+    ssh-keyscan -H github.com >> /root/.ssh/known_hosts
+
 # Copy go mod files
 COPY go.mod go.sum ./
 
@@ -15,18 +28,23 @@ COPY . .
 # Build the application
 RUN CGO_ENABLED=0 GOOS=linux go build -a -installsuffix cgo -o gateway-service .
 
-# Final stage
-FROM alpine:latest
+# Stage 2: Runtime
+FROM alpine:3.18
 
-RUN apk --no-cache add ca-certificates
+RUN apk --no-cache add ca-certificates tzdata
 
-WORKDIR /root/
+RUN addgroup -g 1000 appuser && \
+    adduser -D -u 1000 -G appuser appuser
 
-# Copy binary from builder
-COPY --from=builder /app/gateway-service .
+WORKDIR /home/appuser
+
+COPY --from=builder --chown=appuser:appuser /app/gateway-service .
+
+USER appuser
 
-# Expose port
 EXPOSE 8080
 
-# Run the application
+HEALTHCHECK --interval=30s --timeout=3s --start-period=5s --retries=3 \
+    CMD nc -z localhost 8080 || exit 1
+
 CMD ["./gateway-service"]
diff --git a/gateway-service/Dockerfile.prod b/gateway-service/Dockerfile.prod
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..eb4a72d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/gateway-service/Dockerfile.prod
@@ -0,0 +1,71 @@
+# Stage 1: Builder
+FROM golang:1.26-alpine AS builder
+
+ARG VERSION=dev
+ARG BUILD_TIME
+ARG GIT_COMMIT
+
+# Install build dependencies
+RUN apk add --no-cache git ca-certificates tzdata make openssh-client
+
+WORKDIR /app
+
+# Configure Git for private repos
+RUN git config --global url."git@github.com:".insteadOf "https://github.com/"
+
+# Copy SSH key for private repo access (build arg)
+ARG SSH_PRIVATE_KEY
+RUN mkdir -p /root/.ssh && \
+    echo "${SSH_PRIVATE_KEY}" > /root/.ssh/id_rsa && \
+    chmod 600 /root/.ssh/id_rsa && \
+    ssh-keyscan -H github.com >> /root/.ssh/known_hosts
+
+# Copy go mod files
+COPY go.mod go.sum ./
+
+# Download dependencies (cached layer)
+RUN go mod download
+
+# Copy source code
+COPY . .
+
+# Build with optimizations
+ARG TARGETARCH
+
+RUN CGO_ENABLED=0 GOOS=linux GOARCH=$TARGETARCH go build \
+    -a \
+    -installsuffix cgo \
+    -ldflags="-w -s -X main.Version=${VERSION} -X main.BuildTime=${BUILD_TIME} -X main.GitCommit=${GIT_COMMIT}" \
+    -o gateway-service .
+
+# Stage 2: Runtime
+FROM alpine:3.18
+
+# Install minimal runtime dependencies
+RUN apk --no-cache add ca-certificates tzdata curl
+
+# Create non-root user for security
+RUN addgroup -g 1000 appuser && \
+    adduser -D -u 1000 -G appuser appuser
+
+WORKDIR /home/appuser
+
+# Copy binary from builder
+COPY --from=builder --chown=appuser:appuser /app/gateway-service .
+
+USER appuser
+
+# Expose HTTP port
+EXPOSE 8080
+
+# Metadata
+LABEL org.opencontainers.image.title="HireMind Gateway Service"
+LABEL org.opencontainers.image.description="HTTP API gateway for interview and auth services"
+LABEL org.opencontainers.image.version="${VERSION}"
+
+# Health check against the HTTP /health endpoint
+# HEALTHCHECK --interval=30s --timeout=5s --start-period=10s --retries=3 \
+#     CMD curl -f http://localhost:8080/health || exit 1
+
+# Run the application
+CMD ["./gateway-service"]
diff --git a/gateway-service/Makefile b/gateway-service/Makefile
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..9fa3cfd
--- /dev/null
+++ b/gateway-service/Makefile
@@ -0,0 +1,113 @@
+.PHONY: help build build-prod run stop clean logs compose-up compose-down compose-logs compose-rebuild docker-push version
+
+# Variables
+SERVICE_NAME=gateway-service
+DOCKER_REGISTRY=docker.io
+DOCKER_IMAGE=$(DOCKER_REGISTRY)/hiremind/$(SERVICE_NAME)
+VERSION?=latest
+BUILD_TIME=$(shell date -u +'%Y-%m-%dT%H:%M:%SZ')
+GIT_COMMIT=$(shell git rev-parse --short HEAD)
+PORT=8080
+
+# SSH key for pulling the private hiremind-proto-contracts dependency at build time.
+# Override with: make build SSH_KEY=~/.ssh/some_other_key
+SSH_KEY?=$(HOME)/.ssh/id_rsa
+SSH_PRIVATE_KEY=$(shell cat $(SSH_KEY))
+
+help: ## Display this help message
+	@echo "HireMind Gateway Service - Docker & Development Commands"
+	@echo ""
+	@grep -E '^[a-zA-Z_-]+:.*?## .*$$' $(MAKEFILE_LIST) | sort | awk 'BEGIN {FS = ":.*?## "}; {printf "\033[36m%-20s\033[0m %s\n", $$1, $$2}'
+
+# Docker Commands
+build: ## Build Docker image
+	docker build \
+		-t $(DOCKER_IMAGE):$(VERSION) \
+		-t $(DOCKER_IMAGE):latest \
+		--build-arg SSH_PRIVATE_KEY="$(SSH_PRIVATE_KEY)" \
+		-f Dockerfile .
+
+build-prod: ## Build production Docker image
+	docker build \
+		-t $(DOCKER_IMAGE):$(VERSION)-prod \
+		--build-arg VERSION=$(VERSION) \
+		--build-arg BUILD_TIME=$(BUILD_TIME) \
+		--build-arg GIT_COMMIT=$(GIT_COMMIT) \
+		--build-arg SSH_PRIVATE_KEY="$(SSH_PRIVATE_KEY)" \
+		-f Dockerfile.prod .
+
+run: ## Run Docker container
+	docker run -it --rm \
+		--env-file .env \
+		-p $(PORT):$(PORT) \
+		$(DOCKER_IMAGE):$(VERSION)
+
+stop: ## Stop the running container
+	docker stop hiremind-gateway-service || true
+
+docker-push: ## Push Docker image to registry
+	docker push $(DOCKER_IMAGE):$(VERSION)
+	docker push $(DOCKER_IMAGE):latest
+
+# Docker Compose Commands
+compose-up: ## Start services with docker-compose
+	SSH_PRIVATE_KEY="$(SSH_PRIVATE_KEY)" docker-compose up -d
+
+compose-down: ## Stop services with docker-compose
+	docker-compose down
+
+compose-logs: ## View docker-compose logs
+	docker-compose logs -f
+
+compose-logs-service: ## View gateway-service logs only
+	docker-compose logs -f gateway-service
+
+compose-ps: ## Show running containers
+	docker-compose ps
+
+compose-rebuild: ## Rebuild container and start
+	SSH_PRIVATE_KEY="$(SSH_PRIVATE_KEY)" docker-compose up -d --build
+
+logs: ## Follow gateway-service container logs
+	docker logs -f hiremind-gateway-service
+
+# Development Commands
+dev: ## Run service in development mode
+	go run main.go
+
+test: ## Run tests
+	go test -v ./...
+
+test-coverage: ## Run tests with coverage
+	go test -cover ./... -coverprofile=coverage.out
+	go tool cover -html=coverage.out
+
+lint: ## Run linter
+	golangci-lint run
+
+fmt: ## Format code
+	go fmt ./...
+
+clean: ## Clean build artifacts and dangling images
+	rm -f $(SERVICE_NAME)
+	docker image prune -f
+
+# Utility Commands
+version: ## Display build information
+	@echo "Service: $(SERVICE_NAME)"
+	@echo "Version: $(VERSION)"
+	@echo "Docker Image: $(DOCKER_IMAGE)"
+	@echo "Build Time: $(BUILD_TIME)"
+	@echo "Git Commit: $(GIT_COMMIT)"
+
+health-check: ## Check service health
+	curl -f http://localhost:$(PORT)/health || echo "Service not healthy"
+
+image-size: ## Show Docker image size
+	docker images $(DOCKER_IMAGE)
+
+deps: ## Download Go dependencies
+	go mod download
+	go mod tidy
+
+.DEFAULT_GOAL := help
diff --git a/gateway-service/docker-compose.yml b/gateway-service/docker-compose.yml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..e44f3cd
--- /dev/null
+++ b/gateway-service/docker-compose.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,29 @@
+services:
+  gateway-service:
+    build:
+      context: .
+      dockerfile: Dockerfile
+      args:
+        SSH_PRIVATE_KEY: ${SSH_PRIVATE_KEY}
+    container_name: hiremind-gateway-service
+    volumes:
+      - ./.env:/.env:ro
+    env_file:
+      - .env
+    ports:
+      - "8080:8080"
+    networks:
+      - hiremind-network
+    restart: unless-stopped
+    healthcheck:
+      test: [ "CMD", "nc", "-z", "localhost", "8080" ]
+      interval: 30s
+      timeout: 3s
+      retries: 3
+
+networks:
+  # Join the network created by the consumer-service compose project so that
+  # the gateway can resolve "consumer-service" via Docker DNS.
+  hiremind-network:
+    external: true
+    name: consumer-service_hiremind-network