RailEnquiry

NEW DELHI: According top priority to passenger safety, Railway Minister Mr.Mallikarjun Kharge has asked his officers to follow a policy of ‘no loss of life’.

However, ensuring that no lives are lost could prove to be a difficult task in view of the mammoth 1.42 lakh vacancies in safety-related posts in the state-run transporter. To stretch the already thin workforce, hundreds of new trains have been added in the last few years.

The Railway Board, the highest decision-making body which is responsible for operations of 11,000 trains every day and handles projects worth lakhs of crores, has been headless for over a month now. Besides, the board doesn’t have a full-time Member (Staff) and Financial Commissioner.

In a message to general managers, heads of zonal railways and divisional railways managers, Kharge said, “Safety should take priority over all other considerations. A policy of ‘no loss of life’ should be our motto.”

Safety-related posts lying vacant include loco running staff, drivers, station masters, guards, technology supervisors, control and yard staff, signal inspectors and maintenance employees who are crucial for railway operations. The shortage of loco pilots alone is around 20%.

The vacancies have put excessive strain on existing staff which is reflected in the increase in train accidents attributed to human error.

While railways maintains that an aggressive recruitment drive is underway to fill up vacancies, incidents of paper leaks in examinations have slowed down the process. The railways, incidentally, is the largest public sector employer in the country.

The recent ‘cash for promotion’ scam involving the nephew of the former railway minister had raised questions on the way senior level posts in railways board were filled.