Under the banner of AISMA all the 32000 Station Masters of Indian Railways to be on mass leave on 31st May for their demands

Report received from Shri Ajay Dubey, Divisional Secretary, All India Station Masters Association (AISMA), Jhansi (U.P.)

Passengers of Indian Railways, your attention please!

All 32,000 station masters of Indian Railways will be on strike on 31st May 2022. Please plan your journey accordingly to avoid inconvenience.

Why has All India Station Masters Association (AISMA) been forced to take up this struggle? Our demand is that the basic needs of the employees should be met to ensure that passengers continue to receive better facilities.

1. The post of Station Masters working at the station should be filled. Today 6,000 posts of Station Masters are vacant. Station Masters are falling ill under the pressure of excessive work and have been victims of untimely death.

   We have repeatedly informed about this but the rail administration is in deep sleep. Our strike is organised to wake them up.

2. Isn’t the stopping of our night duty allowance unjust? The allowance is given to us for the sweat and blood that goes in our hard work. Due to our night duty, we are suffering from various diseases. The allowance was given to us by the Parliament on the recommendation of a commission. This allowance was stopped by a dictatorial decree of DoPT Finance.

   We protested against this at the divisional, zone, railway board and ministry level, but they are not hearing. This is what trade unions are protesting against and we have given a strike notice.

3. For any organisation to run scientifically, it is necessary to have four levels. Does this need to be told to the government by a trade union?

   There is only one promotion from Station Master to Station Manager today. We have tried again and again to explain that this is illogical. Earlier, we used to get three promotions.

   Our demand is that the designations of SM, SMR, Sr SMR and GAZ SMR should be given.

   The administration does not have to spend any money for this demand, but it has to create the system.

4. Station Master class got 4200 pay grade from 01/01/2016 after a long fight. So, our demand is that we should be given three MACPs as per your MACP rule from 01/01/2016, not from February 2018, which is completely illogical.

   This is why we are organising the strike.

5. Comrades, in the railways, there are provisions for running allowance, hardship allowance, stress allowance for different classes.
   But what about us station masters?

   Our P. Shivan Pillai had raised his voice, and at that time, the logic behind the officers’ demand had been explained.

   Comrades, from the stress of starting a train to the stress of the whole journey, caution about speed, worries about sectional speed, route change, shunting, untoward accidents, pressure of the passengers and managing cleanliness of the station—a station master has several duties but gets charge sheets and punishment instead of stress/safety allowance.

   Even if a bull enters the station, the station master is held responsible.

   Wake up, comrades! Stress/safety allowance is our right.

   For 1 month, we need to have strict self-discipline and do publicity and spread awareness that we will not tolerate this injustice.

   Our fundamental demands are the filling of vacancies and provisions of night duty allowance, MACP from 01/01/2016, cadre restructuring, and safety and stress allowance.

   If anyone questions, tell them the logic of your demands humbly, talk to the passengers and take this to the media.

   No trade union will wage our fight.

   Get organised under the banner of AISMA to strengthen our movement.

    

   AISMA is your companion in all your joys and sorrows.

   Long live AISMA!