Union against move to privatise passenger trains “The passengers would be made to pay more for shorter journey times” Opposing the proposed move to privatise the passenger segment, a railway employees’ union on Wednesday warned any such move would bring the Railways to a screeching halt. All-India Railwaymen’s Federation president Shiv Gopal Mishra told reporters that the union would not allow any kind of privatisation, especially of trains and sections that net revenue for the Railways. That would be disastrous not only for the Railways but also for the passengers, who, he said, would be made to pay more on the pretext of shorter journey times. By privatising trains, such as the Rajdhani, the Duronto and the Shatabdi, or starting better trains on viable routes would mean that the Railways would have to forgo the money-earning trains and routes, Mr. Mishra contended, wondering why the Railways was not talking about handing over the operation of branch lines to private players. Privatisation, he said, would eat into the Railways’ revenue and prove disastrous for its health. Pointing out that privatisation of cleanliness work in trains and stations had led to increased cases of theft in trains and of railway equipment in yards, he said that those hired on a meagre wage of Rs.3,000 could not be expected to be honest. Moreover, the AIRF president added, public criticism of the catering services need hardly be recounted, stressing that one could not expect quality food when private caterers were driven by profit motive. According to Mr. Mishra, safety-related aspects would be the first casualty as unskilled labour would be employed even for skilled jobs, without proper supervision. The 89th convention of the AIRF, to be held in Patna from November 22 to 24, would deliberate on the issues on which the general council had decided to call a strike. The decision, Mr. Mishra said, could not be changed abruptly as neither the Government nor the Railway Ministry had provided any assurance. He said the convention would discuss employee issues, including removal of anomalies in pay and arrear payment and the functioning of the railways under political and external pressures. Purchases were being made blatantly to favour particular manufacturers, Mr. Mishra alleged.
Posted on: Fri, 01 Nov 2013 16:03:28 +0000
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