Track Maintainers are working in pathetic conditions on the tracks

Why is the Principal Chief Engineer taking the plea of insufficient staff?

Are the lessons learnt from past mistakes will make Railways stronger?

Patrolling staff performing singly on track are fear off to work in curvy sections

Immediate stop the outsourcing works related to the engineering department

What is the use of safety rules and Railway Boards orders for removal of staff from bungalows and offices?

Raurkela: Railway Karmachari Trackmaintainer Association (RKTA) has organised a National Conference and safety seminar at Rourkela, South Eastern Railway, Chakradharpur Division on 26th November 2017. Dilip Ray, Former union minister and present MLA/Rourkela, Odisha and patron of RKTA was the chief guest on this occasion. V. Ravi founder President and G. Ganeswar Rao, General Secretary of RKTA were the special dignitaries for the meeting.

This seminar and conference were are specially organised for all the zonal Presidents and General Secretaries of RKTA. Several zonal Presidents and General Secretaries from all over the Indian Railways and Divisions have made their presence and decorated the podium. This National Conference and Safety Seminar held is in continuation of safety seminars being conducted at Agra, North Central Railway, Lucknow, Selu, South Central Railway, Tadepallygudem, Vijayawada Division of South Central Railway and many other places.

MLA Dilip Ray as a Sanrakshak of RKTA has applauded the leadership and management of RKTA National body members. He further said that as a Sanrakshak he is very much happy that the track maintainers are receiving respect and honour from all over, which was never before. This was only because of the unity of labour and pain taken by all the members of RKTA in strengthening it and making it a grand success.

Risk and Hardship Allowance is the result of our continued demand only. He assured all his support as and when required to level the issues before the administration and Government, he said.

General Secretary of RKTA Ganeswar Rao said that the Administration and government should immediately stop the outsourcing several works related to the engineering department. Already several works have been given to Contractors like sleeper/track replacement, track renewal, Ballast packing and several other works. He asked the administration to recruit new candidates from RRC and drop the idea of outsourcing to private parties.

He demanded immediate implementation of ‘Rakshak’ a walkie-talkie instrument which has been introduced in Budget 2016-17 and kept under trail runs in South Central Railway to all the zones. With the provision of this walkie-talkie to beleaguered Track Maintainers working in very pathetic conditions on the tracks will get alerts from the nearby stations and cabins about the approaching trains.

As per reports South central Railway alone files hundreds of deaths from patrolling duty staff due to non-information of approaching trains and in other eventualities. Around more than 500 death cases of Track Maintainers or patrolmen/keyman of this department gets registered throughout the Railways.

Rao emphasized on double man patrolling throughout the Indian railways. Instead of a single man performing that duty with compromising the safety of the passengers and safety of freight. He demanded the creation of Senior Technician post, enhancement of departmental quota for JE posts, clearing of pending LARSGESS cases.

He further discussed some safety rules and regulations as envisaged in chapter-XV of Permanent Way Manual with his Zonal Presidents and General Secretaries. He demanded training courses like Initial, Promotional, Refresher and Specialized training for all the cadres of Engineering department. The safety of passengers, freight and track maintainers has become the first priority, hence RKTA has successfully taken up this issue seriously by conducting safety seminars to educate the mass.

He said that he had a meeting with K. Sivaprasad, Principal Chief Engineer, South Central Railway on 06/11/ 2017 and briefly explained the ground reality and problems being faced by night patrolling duty staff performing duties singly. PCE/SCR K. Sivaprasad laid his inability due to insufficient manpower.

Here the readers must remember the Railway Boards order of pulling out the track maintainers from officer’s bungalows and offices if these orders have been duly complied with, then why Principal Chief Engineer is taking the plea of insufficient staff?

In continuation of several safety seminars and general meetings RKTA General Secretary G. Ganeswar Rao had met at Nagpur and explained briefly to S. S. Soin, General Manager of South East Central Railway on 03/12/2017.

Similarly, V. Ravi founder President/RKTA conducted a meeting at Ajmer. DRM, Mumbai Central Division of Western Railway has been informed by Ganeswar Rao about single man patrolling at Vapi section near Bhilad station, there is a 2 km stretch curve, where there is absolutely zero visibility of approaching trains because of the curve, patrolling staff performing singly are fear off to work in this section.

When these crucial places are devoid of manpower, what is the usage of applicability of safety rules and ground reality of Railway Boards orders for removal of staff from bungalows and offices?

When Ashwani Lohani, Chairman, Railway Board is strictly formulating and making amiable working conditions for the welfare of workman but due to least interested zonal and divisional authorities in implementing the ideology of Chairman is taking the plight of workman elsewhere. Lessons learnt from past mistakes will make Railways stronger and does not let any loopholes, this all will be possible with committedness towards job by every Railway employee.