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Showing posts with label Railway union. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Railway union. Show all posts

Friday, 5 February 2016

16:40

Railway Engineers Condemn the Railway Board & labour Union

Railway Engineers Condemn the Railway Board & labour Union

Huge saving to Railway (about 80 Crores), if provide group 'B' to their Engineers

Railway can save more than 100 crores per annum, if dare to implement the DOPT order

Labour Federation protest against Debroy Committee recommendation to save Railway Board

New Delhi (2 Feb. 2016) : Railway engineers of Indian Railway have staged 2 days Akrosh dharna & rally at Jantar Mantar, just after the submission of 7th CPC report on 1st and 2nd December & further hold all India level Akrosh Dharnas in front of all General Managers / DRMs offices on 20th Jan. 2016, on a call of All India Railway Engineers Federation (AIREF) to protest the report submitted by 7th central pay commission (7CPC), and the negative role of Railway board.
Railway Engineers are very much disappointed to see that no agenda item for railway Engineers has been kept in the Board meeting to be held with labour federation i.e. on 4th Feb.16 at Railway Board. It is very sad that Railway Board misled by labour Federation and both labour federations never pressurized Railway Board to implement DOPT gazette notification no. 605 of 09.04.2009 in Railway but against it.

Further, proposal of upgradation of only 3335 post of apex group ‘C’ post to group 'B' is only eye wash to the category and not a single one be satisfied by this. Railway Engineers of Indian Railways are excited and forced by Board & labour Federation to take hard steps, it defame the Ministry of Railways.

Here, it is to point out that there is a hidden agenda between Board and Federations to protect each other. Labour Federation protest against Debroy Committee recommendation to save Railway Board and now to save Labour Unions and Federation, Railway Board deny the group 'B' status at par with other Central Govt. Engineers to Railway Engineers and even manipulated the 7th CPC panel, even though CPC was agreed to recommend group 'B'. Due to which Justice Mathur has also been blamed for not worked independently or like a Justice.

Due the act of Railway Board, Ministry of Railway has been defamed in the eye of 80,000 Engineers, those who are working round the clock to built the image of Indian Railways and playing main key role to upgrade it to world class, but Railway Engineers have been degraded badly and kept in the same classification with workman (helpers and Khalasi),  it deprived them. Railway engineers were again demoralized when, pay commission denied to recommend Group 'B' status to them sustaining views of Railway Ministry without examining in detail.

If 80,000 Railway Engineers granted group 'B' status then-

a. It will improve the quality of manpower thus improve railway safety.

b. Saving of revenue - Railway can save its bonus amount approx. 80,000 x Rs. 10,000 = Rs. 80,00,00,000/- (about 80 Crores). It will be more and may increased drastically.

c. Administrative control over workman category will improve, that is need of time.

d. Justice Khanna Committee recommendation ‘to debar Subordinate Engineers from Labour Union activity’ will be implemented without any change in trade union act.

 Source:http://www.railsamacharenglish.com/news/231/read
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Wednesday, 20 January 2016

17:38

Buckled under Union’s pressure, Southern Railway shunts tough officer

Buckled under Union’s pressure, Southern Railway shunts tough officer

Chennai: A senior officer of Southern Railway, known or his no-nonsense and straightforward approach, has been transferred, allegedly due to strong-arm tactics adopted by the Southern Railway Mazdoor Union (SRMU). SRMU claims to be the sole recognised employee union of the zonal railway .

B Ravichander, an Indian Railway Traffic Service (IRTS) cadre officer who is senior divisional commercial manager (Sr DCM) of Chennai division, has had frequent run-ins with the union during his one year tenure. In an order issued on January 12, he has been posted as the chief public relations officer (CPRO) of the zone and the serving CPRO has been posted as senior divisional commercial manager. However, neither of hem has taken charge.

The tipping point of Ravichander’s feud with SRMU was in May last year when he unearthed a racket in the ticket-checking department where many employees had engaged proxies. His orders against the erring staff were overruled by the general manager’s office and personnel department, allegedly under pressure from the union. Sources said the union has been trying to dislodge Ravichander, as he insisted on a greater output from employees, many of whom remained inactive and demotivated. “Employees used to lazing around had an axe to grind. Ravichander was very particular that passenger amenities and comfort shouldn’t be spoiled due to administrative oversight,” said an SRMU member.

Officials and SRMU insiders privy to the issue said the union orchestrated a protest against Ravichander in November last year.Around 30 Southern Railway employees, including women entered Ravichander’s room, raising slogans.An eyewitness recalled that foul language was used against the officer.

The decision to transfer Ravichander has demotivated many officers in Southern Railway as they feel the administration has buckled under the union’s pressure. “Now railway officers will think twice before enforcing rules at the workplace as their higher-ups are not supporting them. Also, this doesn’t send the right message to youngsters who want to join administrative services,” an official said.

SRMU vice-president Raja Sridhar, however, said the union had nothing to do with the transfer. “He did not meet the GM’s target and hence was transferred,” he said.
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Saturday, 15 August 2015

21:23

Indian Railways jumps on OROP bandwagon

Indian Railways jumps on OROP bandwagon

Employees of the Indian Railways have demanded the benefits of the One Rank, One Pension (OROP) policy if the Centre implements the scheme for defence services personnel. They have made this pitch in their discussions with the Seventh Pay Commission.

Speaking to media, Shiva Gopal Mishra, general secretary of the All India Railwaymen’s Federation, the largest railway union in the country, acknowledged the demand. “The principle of OROP should be applicable to the railway employees also if the same is accepted for the defence services by the pay commission. We sympathise with their demand and feel it should be extended,” he said.

The railway unions had met the commission for oral evidence in March this year.

The demand could create complications for the Centre which has so far not been able to respond to the original demand from ex-servicemen. The specific mandate for the pay commission, however, does not include the examination of OROP even though its award will cover military personnel too. The railway employees have, however, made it clear to the commission that if there is any suggestion on OROP in the final report, then their demands should also be considered favourably.

The Commission has already overshot the time frame for submitting its report on a revised salary structure for central government employees, which was due in August. It is now likely to submit the report by September-end.

The demand by railway employees for OROP could lead to demands from other civilian services as well, even as the bill for meeting the demand from the defence services is still being firmed up. At 1.33 million, railway employees form the single largest chunk from among any ministry or department of central government staff. Their salary and allowance bill for 2015-16 is estimated at Rs 62,410 crore, or almost 42 per cent of the total bill of Rs 1,49,524 crore as per budget figures.

While the Seventh Pay Commission, in its internal deliberations, is understood to have not taken a favourable view of the OROP because of the financial implications, any formal examination of the same will have to depend on the government’s position on the issue. The government is now expected to set up a committee on the issue.

Overall, the commission has decided that the extent of rise in pay for all central government staff would, on average, be about 26 per cent. But here too, the commission is learnt to have favoured going back to the Fifth Pay Commission award of making pay scales attached to posts instead of retaining the innovative pay bands system introduced by the Sixth Pay Commission.

It has also decided to remove the slight edge in pay structure of IAS officers as compared to other central service officers.
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Tuesday, 23 June 2015

21:28

Railway union members to oppose Debroy Commission report, protest on 25th


Railway union members to oppose Debroy Commission report, protest on 25th

Ahmedabad (ADI):  J G Mahurkar, general secretary of Western Railway Mazdoor Sangh (WRMS), announced widespread protest against the recommendations of the Bibek Debroy Commission report on Indian Railways and said that the railway workers would not tolerate the sweeping changes. The union members would stage protests at various Divisional RM offices on June 25.

Talking to the media, Mahurkar said that a decade ago the Rakesh Mohan Committee report was tabled which was criticized and shelved. “The present government has brought back the same report in the new garb which is not at all in favour of the railway employees. The British had set up the entire railway system 150 years ago and since then railway employees got access to its hospitals, schools and amenities. With the recommendations, the government wants to strip the employees of all these benefits,” he said.

He added that they will burn the report copies and will force the government not to implement it keeping in mind the best interest railway employees.
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Sunday, 14 June 2015

10:28

Scrap Bibek Debroy report on Railway restructuring: say Unions

Scrap Bibek Debroy report on Railway restructuring: say Unions

New Delhi: Angry about the recommendations of the Bibek Debroy-led panel,  Railway trade unions are planning to launch mass demostrations and large scale rallies in protest. They are also demanding scrapping of the report that recommends “privatisation in the name of liberalisation”.

“A bare perusal of the report reveals that the committee in the name of liberalisation has recommended entry of new operators into railway operations, that is, privatisation,” said Guman Singh, President of National Federation of Indian Railwaymen (NFIR), which represents more than 80% of Indian Railways’ over 1.3 million workers.

The federation’s press secretary also said the unions’ brass has given clear directions to its affiliates to arrange mass demonstrations, large scale protest rallies and press conferences to express the anger of the railway employees against the recommendations of the committee.

Planning Commission member Bibek Debroy had on Friday submitted his report on the restructuring of the railway board and mobilisation of resources for railway projects to the rail ministry. He is also expected to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the weekend to brief him about the recommendations.

While Debroy has recommended liberalisation of railways and sought to define liberalisation separately from privatisation in the report, he has also said that entry of private players into the system is already provided by the extant policy.

Trade unions fear any effort at bringing in private players into railway operations would jeopardise workers’ jobs and negatively impact railways’ financial health.

The Debroy panel has also recommended setting up an independent regulator, merging of the eight existing Group A railway services, rationalising of the workforce and restructuring of Indian Railways on the lines of British railways.

Unions complain Debroy did not examine the actions of successive governments in starving the railways of investments and instead blamed the workforce for its problems.

NFIR said it is not desirable to experiment with FDI and private players in infrastructure without building massive railway infrastructure first and in his euphoria for a roadmap, Debroy ignored the shortcomings of European railways including the failed privatisation model of British Railways.

“Restructuring cannot be an exercise subjected to such a ‘disastrously confused perspective’ of connecting the current state of affairs with what is desired for the future,” the union said in its comments on the report.

The other influential union, All India Railway Federation (AIRF) has also called for observing June 30 as “Black Day” in protest of the Debroy report. AIRF General Secretary Shiv Gopal Mishra termed the report as clear roadmap for privatisation and hoped its recommendations are not accepted by the government.

There are some good things in the Debroy Panel Report: AIRF

While rejecting the final report of the railway restructuring committee headed by Bibek Debroy, the All India Railwaymen’s Federation (AIRF) has welcomed some of its recommendations.

“We support the idea of accounting reforms. But, as far as any regulator is concerned, we want the regulator to be a tariff authority only, instead of being responsible for operations and maintenance as well,” AIRF General Secretary Shivagopal Mishra, told.

Admitting that there is departmentalism in the Railways, Mishra said a mechanism needed to be worked out to make Indian Railways work as a team.

But, the mechanism needs to be different from what has been suggested by the Bibek Debroy committee, he added.
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10:19

Railway Union to observe ‘Black Day’ on June 30

Railway Union to observe ‘Black Day’ on June 30

New Delhi: An official panel’s recommendation to allow private players in Railways has met with strong opposition from employees’ union which has given a call for observing “black day” on June 30 across the country.

“We have decided to observe black day on June 30 all over the country by wearing black badges,” said Shiv Gopal Mishra, General Secretary, All India Railway Federation.

Terming it as a “clear roadmap for privatisation”, Mishra said, “We hope that the Debroy report will not be accepted by the government.”

In its report, the Bibek Debroy committee has recommended a whole set of reforms including entry of private players into railways, separation of off-line activities from core business, passing on subsidies to the Centre and an end to the practice of a separate budget.

The report is against 95 per cent of rail passengers of the country who travel in general and sleeper classes, Mishra said.

The panel however said it is not recommending privatisation of Railways by means of sale of equity but endorses private entry with the provision of an independent regulator.

For open access of other players, it has recommended separation of track construction operation, train operation and rolling stock production units under separate entities.

The high-level committee was formed in September to restructure the Railways and suggest ways for resource mobilisation. After the receipt of the final report, the Railway Board is to submit a report on it to the Prime Minister by June-end.

A Railways spokesperson said the Railways will examine the report and only then a decision will be taken.
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Friday, 22 May 2015

08:29

Raises questions over most of the recommendations made by NITI Aayog in a scathing 32-page letter

Raises questions over most of the recommendations made by NITI Aayog in a scathing 32-page letter

New Delhi: The Bibek Debroy committee’s report on ways to restructure and modernise Indian Railways has come in for severe criticism from the workers union – National Federation of Indian Railwaymen (NFIR)  – that represents majority of the 13 lakh railway employees.

In a scathing 32-page letter to Debroy, the federation has trashed most of the recommendations made by the NITI Aayog member including introduction of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) and private partnership in operations, formation of a regulatory authority and revamping the railway board through its bifurcation.

NFIR has alleged Debroy did not examine the actions of successive governments in starving the railways of investments and deliberately withholding passenger fare hikes through a decade.

“For instance, when fares were raised and withdrawn during one railway budget, the loss was around Rs 7,000 crore. The organisation is not responsible for the investment starved situation,” the union said.

According to NFIR, it is not desirable to experiment with FDI and private players in infrastructure without building massive railway infrastructure first. It argues political compulsions and commitments are responsible for slowing down of the railway network and train speeds and not railway workforce.

“In its euphoria to provide a new roadmap for the Railways, with private players pitching in, perhaps the committee has failed to go deep into these initiatives on the European railways, whose tariffs soared, and most of the rail systems such as the one in Britain still provide huge subsidies to infrastructure companies, which remain state-owned,” the letter said.

The workers union also invoked British author and railway historian Christian Wolmar to highlight the failed privatisation experiment in British railways which has been recommended by Debroy. Wolmar had stated that “privatisation and fragmentation had created a dysfunctional (British) railways as it was undertaken for ideological and financial reasons with little consideration of passengers.”

Interestingly, the union has also claimed that either the inputs for the Debroy panel were hurriedly taken from the railway board or sufficient time was not spent in understanding what was supplied.

“For instance, a table at Page 66 of Debroy report wrongly shows Parbhani as another division under South Central Railway whereas it has only 6 divisions-Secunderabad, Hyderabad, Vijayawada, Guntur, Guntakal and Nanded,” NFIR contended.

Trashing Debroy’s argument in favour of increasing competition by introduction of new players, NFIR argued his report has ignored how, thanks to massive gauge conversion exercise since 1990s, Indian Railways has managed to successfully increase freight volumes without substantial increase in route Kilometer.

“There are certain elements of discord and inconsistency within the report. For instance, it is stated the Committee does not recommend privatisation of IR except in very specific non-core segments and goes on to state that privatisation is to be implemented as liberalisation while deliberating on rationalising production of rolling stock, which is essentially a core segment of IR. This is basically the irony of the entire report,” NFIR said in its letter.

The union has also cautioned against the negative impact of introducing PPP at a time when projects worth Rs 1.86 lakh crore to be implemented under the mode are virtually stalled.

“Restructuring cannot be an exercise which can be subjected to such a disastrously confused perspective of connecting the current state of matters with what can be actually and effectively desired for the future,” the letter stated.

Criticising the Debroy panel for failing to understand the real reason for a regulatory body, NFIR has argued “the necessity is perhaps of not a ‘Regulatory’ mechanism but of an automatically processed routing-and-rating system in-built within the IR. Similarly, if Pension liability is ‘unbundled’ from IR’s liability, staff costs would sound almost menial.”

The union has said Debroy panel missed the crux of the issue – unlike many other railways in the world, Indian Railways has not had a connection between the volume of freight carried on a line and the freight rate fixed for that line.

The letter also states that panel has wrongly concluded that Indian Railways is to be freed from certain activities in order to concentrate on core business. It asks the committee to appreciate that self-sufficiency is essential in production and maintenance of locomotives and coaches and entrusting railways’ activities to outside agencies would dilute quality of service.

Railway workers union says
  1. Debroy did not examine the actions of successive governments in starving the railways of investments and blamed workforce for problems
  2. It is not desirable to experiment with FDI and private players in infrastructure without building massive railway infrastructure first
  3. In euphoria for roadmap, Debroy ignored the shortcomings of European railways including the failed privatization model of British Railways
  4. A table in Debroy report wrongly considers Parbhani as a Division under South-Central Railway while it is actually not, indicating the inputs were taken by the panel hurriedly from the railway board
  5. Restructuring cannot be an exercise subjected to such a “disastrously confused perspective” of connecting the current state of affairs with what is desired for the future
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