Trolleys will be used in place of boxes in Indian Railways. For the first time, the Railways had given guidelines regarding this in 2006.Due to heavy opposition, the Railways could not implement the instructions then.
New Delhi. An important news related to Indian Railways is coming out at this time. If everything goes according to plan, then the loco pilot (train driver) and guard in the railways will not have to carry their personal belongings and official equipment in iron trunks and they will be able to use trolley bags instead. The Railway Board has written a letter to all its zones asking them to provide trolley bags to the loco pilots and guards. The board wrote in a letter on July 19, “The zonal railways are requested to start implementing the decision to provide trolley bags to the loco pilots and guards.”
According to railway officials, the board initiated the move in 2006 with a broad-based directive. A year later, another guideline was issued after discussions with trade unions for its implementation on a trial basis. However, due to strong opposition from loco pilots and guards, the process of implementation continued for the next 11 years. In 2018, the board once again decided to pursue the scheme in two zones—Northern Railway and South Central Railway—for testing.
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The final order came two years ago…
After positive feedback from various trials, the board issued a final order on February 21, 2022, stating, “Trolley bags may be provided to loco pilots and guards in lieu of line boxes (iron trunks). Zonal railways may decide to give allowance in lieu of trolley bags purchased by loco pilots and guards themselves. The allowance will be limited to Rs 5000 for every three years.” The order also directed the concerned departments to standardise the equipment in trolley bags, besides providing ‘soft copies’ of railway manuals to reduce the weight of trolley bags.
The railways had to order suspension…
However, the All India Guards Council and other concerned stakeholders challenged the order in various legal forums, including the principal bench of the Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) in New Delhi, forcing the railways to put it on hold. A railway official said, “Whenever a loco pilot or guard (officially called train manager) ‘signs on’ for train duty, he keeps an iron trunk weighing more than 20 kg in the engine/guard cabin as it contains railway manuals, various tools as well as his personal belongings. To carry the heavy iron trunk, they are provided with a porter who takes the trunk to their respective cabins.”
Why is the railway union protesting?
The guard union termed the order as arbitrary and said that the railways is imposing the duty of ‘box porter’ or ‘box boy’ (coolie) on the train managers. The Railway Board stressed before CAT the many benefits of terminating the services of porters. The board said that terminating the contract of ‘box boy’ will not only lead to financial savings, but will also save the time of trains stopping due to unloading and loading heavy boxes from the engine or guard’s coach. On February 8, CAT refused to give any relief to the ‘All India Guards Council’ and said that it will not interfere in this order of the Railway Ministry. With this, the way has been paved for the board to implement its decision. After the order of CAT, the board has issued a letter to all the zones on July 19 asking them to start providing trolley bags to loco pilots and guards.
Tags: Hindi news, Latest railway news, Railway News
FIRST PUBLISHED : July 25, 2024, 20:13 IST
Trolleys will be used in place of boxes in Indian Railways. For the first time, the Railways had given guidelines regarding this in 2006.Due to heavy opposition, the Railways could not implement the instructions then.
New Delhi. An important news related to Indian Railways is coming out at this time. If everything goes according to plan, then the loco pilot (train driver) and guard in the railways will not have to carry their personal belongings and official equipment in iron trunks and they will be able to use trolley bags instead. The Railway Board has written a letter to all its zones asking them to provide trolley bags to the loco pilots and guards. The board wrote in a letter on July 19, “The zonal railways are requested to start implementing the decision to provide trolley bags to the loco pilots and guards.”
According to railway officials, the board initiated the move in 2006 with a broad-based directive. A year later, another guideline was issued after discussions with trade unions for its implementation on a trial basis. However, due to strong opposition from loco pilots and guards, the process of implementation continued for the next 11 years. In 2018, the board once again decided to pursue the scheme in two zones—Northern Railway and South Central Railway—for testing.
Also read:- Rashtrapati Bhavan: ‘Darbar’ culture will not work… Modi government changed 2 more names given by the British
The final order came two years ago…
After positive feedback from various trials, the board issued a final order on February 21, 2022, stating, “Trolley bags may be provided to loco pilots and guards in lieu of line boxes (iron trunks). Zonal railways may decide to give allowance in lieu of trolley bags purchased by loco pilots and guards themselves. The allowance will be limited to Rs 5000 for every three years.” The order also directed the concerned departments to standardise the equipment in trolley bags, besides providing ‘soft copies’ of railway manuals to reduce the weight of trolley bags.
The railways had to order suspension…
However, the All India Guards Council and other concerned stakeholders challenged the order in various legal forums, including the principal bench of the Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) in New Delhi, forcing the railways to put it on hold. A railway official said, “Whenever a loco pilot or guard (officially called train manager) ‘signs on’ for train duty, he keeps an iron trunk weighing more than 20 kg in the engine/guard cabin as it contains railway manuals, various tools as well as his personal belongings. To carry the heavy iron trunk, they are provided with a porter who takes the trunk to their respective cabins.”
Why is the railway union protesting?
The guard union termed the order as arbitrary and said that the railways is imposing the duty of ‘box porter’ or ‘box boy’ (coolie) on the train managers. The Railway Board stressed before CAT the many benefits of terminating the services of porters. The board said that terminating the contract of ‘box boy’ will not only lead to financial savings, but will also save the time of trains stopping due to unloading and loading heavy boxes from the engine or guard’s coach. On February 8, CAT refused to give any relief to the ‘All India Guards Council’ and said that it will not interfere in this order of the Railway Ministry. With this, the way has been paved for the board to implement its decision. After the order of CAT, the board has issued a letter to all the zones on July 19 asking them to start providing trolley bags to loco pilots and guards.
Tags: Hindi news, Latest railway news, Railway News
FIRST PUBLISHED : July 25, 2024, 20:13 IST