Statement by Kamgar Ekta Committee, June 2026
Workers across various departments of Indian Railways, irrespective of which unions or associations they are members of, need to raise the demand of filling up vacancies demand in one voice. They should not allow past divisions to adversely impact their united action on this issue. They also need to enlist the support of people at large, and particularly of various organizations of working people who use railways for travel.
Workers of the Indian Railways have for years been demanding filling up of the large numbers of vacancies in various critical categories of employees, which is necessary for the safe and smooth operation of its vast network. The workload on most rail workers has become unbearable. Instead of addressing the problem, the railway administration wants to further reduce the number of workers, without caring for the safety and health of railways workers and passengers.
The situation is extremely alarming.
Here are some startling facts.
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The number of vacancies has increased over the years instead of coming down.
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Number of non-gazetted vacant postsin 2015: 1.4 lakh.
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Number of non-gazetted vacant posts on 1 June 2023: 2.74 lakh.
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Number of vacant posts in safety category: 1.78 lakh.
(As per the reply given by the Indian Railways in June 2023 to an RTI question)
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Number of trains operated daily:
|
|
Passenger |
Goods |
|
2014-15 |
13,098 |
7,000 |
|
2024-25 |
13,940 |
11,631 |
|
% increase |
6.5 |
66 |
Yet, the sanctioned strength has not been increased.
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Indian Railways recruited 5.08 lakh workers between 2014-15 and 2024-25, i.e., on an average, it recruited only 46,182 workers per year.
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Roughly 30,000 to 50,000 workers retire every year from Indian Railways. (The centralised Advanced Railway Pension Access (ARPAN) processes pension settlements for roughly 50,000 retiring workers every year.)
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Annual recruitment thus only takes care of retirements. Number of vacancies remains the same or increases.
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Further, the railway administration wants to reduce the workforce every year by 2%. For 2026-27, the railway zones and other units have been given a target of surrendering over 29,600 posts.
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How unbearable the stress on employees is became obvious when 72 loco pilots in Mumbai Division of the Central Railway submitted applications for voluntary retirement a few months back!
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Loco pilots are made to regularly work for 10 to 14 hours. They are forced to do three or four consecutive night shift duties against the railway’s own guidelines. 19% of posts of loco pilots are vacant!
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Sometimes goods trains are being run without train managers (guards) due to the shortage of staff. 27% of posts of train managers are vacant!
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Shortage in critical signal and maintenance staff is as high as 30%.
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Over 500 track maintainers lose their lives every year while working on tracks because no person is provided to warn them about incoming trains, as 31% of posts are vacant. Nor are they provided ‘Rakshak’ device to warn them about incoming trains.
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Nearly 20% more station managers are required to manage the increase in the number of trains.
Workers of various categories of Indian Railways have been fighting continuously, raising the most important demand of filling up of vacancies. However, it is becoming very clear that this is not enough. Workers across various departments of Indian Railways, irrespective of which unions or associations they are members of, need to raise this demand in one voice. They should not allow past divisions to adversely impact their united action on this issue. Then and only then will the Railway administration be forced to relent.
Vacancies leading to extreme stressful work environment compromise safety of passengers too. This includes their family members too! -Hence Indian Railway workers need to enlist the support of people at large, and particularly of various organizations of working people who use railways for travel.
An Attack on One is an Attack on All!