Report by Kamgar Ekta Committee (KEC) correspondent
As a part of all India actions, the loco running staff of Pune division, under the banner of All India Loco Running Staff Association (AILRSA), organized a very militant demonstration in front of the DRM office in Pune on 24th September.
Those who addressed the gathering included Shri Pintu Roy, Zonal Assistant General Secretary, Central Railway, Shri Pankaj Kumar, Working Committee member, Shri Sudhir Kumar, Divisional Treasurer, AILRSA, Shri Dashrath, All India Railway Track maintainers Union (AIRTU), Shri Sandeep Waghmare, leader of Swatantra Railway Bahujan Karmachari Union and Com Pradip and Com Das, both Joint Secretaries of Kamgar Ekta Committee (KEC).
A leaflet that KEC has issued in support of the struggle of loco pilots was distributed in the demonstration and other places too. (Given at the end of the report).
In his address one of the AILRSA leaders explained why the loco running staff is raising various demands. We are not reiterating the details here since they have been explained in many articles on this website. However a significant point the leader mentioned is very necessary to reiterate here. Challenging the Railway administration, he declared that no pressure tactics being employed by the Railway administration will be able to suppress the loco running staff since they have full trust in the fighting unity of AILRSA members and other Indian Railway workers. He explained how AILRSA members raised money to support 5 Loco Pilots and Assistant Loco Pilots of Kharagpur, who had to struggle for six long years without a job, to fight against the blatant injustice meted out to them by the railway authorities. Finally the Railway administration had to bow down and reinstate all of them.
Leaders of the other organisations expressed their strong support of the just demands raised by AILRSA and asserted that the path of struggle they have chosen is to create safe working conditions for all so that the passengers’ safety is assured. The speakers pointed out that the usual excuse dished out by the government that they do not have any funds is a lie. The government has all the funds to give to the rich corporates but not for the toiling workers or for ensuring a safe rail-transport system so that safety of the lakhs of people traveling by trains every day is guaranteed in practice.
It has been reported that Indian Railway authorities have been trying their best to prevent any such actions in many divisions of Indian Railways. Similar attempts were made in Pune too. A large posse of police personnel was time and again putting many hurdles when the demonstration was in progress. They tried to prevent the use of loud speakers citing that it will cause “disturbance”. They tried to say that the demonstration does not have permission. But when this did not succeed, they tried to force a quick closure of the proceedings. However spirit of the participants ensured that the demonstration action continued for a few hours. When during the demonstration it suddenly started raining, the participants lifted the tarpaulin on which they were sitting and used it as shield from rain, and ensured that the action continued.
A noteworthy aspect of this action was the fact that family members of the loco running staff had also come all the way from Daund, which is more than 80 km away, to participate also participated in the action. This participation of family members without doubt must have impressed on the minds of thousands of people who witnessed the action that the issues being raised by the loco running staff are indeed very serious. Such participation of family members increases the power of agitations many times. The success of the RINL struggle (in Vishakhapatnam) for more than a year so far owes a lot to this fact.
We call upon all AIFAP constituents to support the just struggle of loco running staff of Indian Railways!
Long live the struggle of loco pilots!
Statement of Kamgar Ekta Committee, 22 September 2024
Comrade Loco Pilots,
Under the leadership of your organization All India Loco Running Staff Association (AILRSA), you have started a struggle for many important demands all over the country. As always, we, on behalf of Kamgar Ekta Committee, strongly support your struggle.
- Privatization and corporatization of railways should be stopped,
- Running staff should be given periodic rest of 46 hours, night duty should not be done for more than two consecutive nights, and running staff should be sent back to headquarters in 36 hours,
- Maximum 8 hours duty should be fixed in goods trains and maximum 6 hours duty in passenger trains,
- All vacant posts of running staff should be filled immediately on a permanent basis.
Apart from these major demands, there are many demands related to salary and promotion, toilet arrangements, special arrangements for women loco pilots, etc.
The Kamgar Ekta Committee believes that all the workers related to the operating department of the railways like loco pilots, station masters, guards, signals and telecom, track maintainers, etc. have a special responsibility – “timely and safe transportation of a few crore passengers and millions of tons of goods every day”. All of you always try your best to fulfil that responsibility. But the railway administration has been very negligent towards you. Because of that you have to face a lot of stress at the workplace, which has a very adverse effect on your health and family life. Working in stressful conditions also puts your and passengers’ safety in danger. Not only this, but if any railway accident happens, then shamelessly the railway administration and the government put you in the dock. The Kamgar Ekta Committee believes that you should work in stress-free and respectable conditions and that is completely the primary responsibility of the railway administration and the government.
Comrades,
We salute you because despite immense difficulties and tremendous pressure from the railway administration and the government, you have made your struggle more widespread and intense. Because of that struggle, the government is having to bow down. This is the reason why the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Railway Board had to write a letter to the government and raise the issue of filling up posts in the railways. There are also reports that in different zones, high officials are writing letters and instructing that loco pilots should not be given duty for more than 10 hours, etc. But all this seems to be a drama or a gimmick because in reality, if loco pilots refuse to do more duty, then the officers take action like suspending them, transferring them by making false allegations. This has been your experience in Pune Division. On behalf of the Kamgar Ekta Committee, we condemn this two faced behaviour of the railway administration and the government. In Pune Division, you opposed that action with strong unity and the officials had to withdraw that unjust action. We appreciate your strong unity.
Comrades,
Due to the government’s efforts to privatize all public sector enterprises, there are a large number of vacancies in all enterprises, working conditions have become extremely insecure, job insecurity has increased a lot, due to which all the workers are suffering. Kamgar Ekta Committee believes that this policy of privatization is not only anti-worker, but also anti-social and anti-national. Therefore, Kamgar Ekta Committee is making every effort to unite all the workers and consumers of the public sector, that is, the general public. Spreading the work of the All India Forum against Privatization (AIFAP) across the country is a step in that work. Through that medium, we have also made your struggle popular.
Comrades, let us together run a campaign to get the support of the general public for this legitimate struggle of yours!
Comrades, let us together strengthen your unity with other workers of the country!
Contact – Das 9819588373; Girish 9819323064; Suryakant 9820119317