Report of the correspondent of Mazdoor Ekta Committee
The 24th Biennial Convention of the All-India Loco Running Staff Association (AILRSA) was held on 17-18 December 2024 in a very militant atmosphere at the Sri Krishna Memorial Hall, near Gandhi Maidan, Patna. About 3,000 railway drivers from all over the country along with their families participated in this convention with great enthusiasm. Women loco pilots registered their presence in large numbers in the convention.
During the convention, representatives from various divisions of the Indian Railways presented reports of the work done in their respective areas.
The central executive was elected, consisting of the President R.R. Bhagat, working President L. Moni and 13 vice-presidents for different divisions, the General Secretary K.C. James along with three joint secretaries and 12 assistant secretaries, Treasurer Mohanchand Pandey along with assistant treasurer and an internal auditor.
On the evening of 17 December, the loco-pilots took out a procession. With red flags in their hands, the loco-pilots raised slogans against the anti-people, anti-social, anti-labour policies of the government. The neighbouring areas reverberated with these slogans – Stop privatisation of Indian Railways! Cancel NPS and restore OPS! Fill hundreds and thousands of vacant posts in Indian Railways!
Mazdoor Ekta Committee, CITU, Old Pension Restoration Struggle Committee, All India State Government Employees Federation, All India Station Masters Association, including CPI(M) MLA Ajay Kumar participated in the convention.
Speakers at the convention pointed out that the government is implementing the policy of privatization in Indian Railways. All the governments, one after another so far have continued to implement the same anti-national and anti-social policy. Our fellow citizens must be told that this privatization is against the workers, farmers and common toilers. Privatization of railways is a cruel joke being imposed on the country. The capitalists will run the railways, make profits and further loot the hard work of our toilers. We have to spread awareness against privatization among the general public. All of us have to unite in this fight against privatization.
While addressing the convention, the speakers, narrated that lakhs of posts of employees are lying vacant in Indian Railways. Out of the vacant posts, 17,000 posts are of loco pilots. The vacant posts are not being filled. Due to shortage of drivers, the loco pilots on duty have to bear excessive workload. They are being forced to work overtime. These stressful conditions of work make the loco pilots vulnerable to various illnesses. Most of the loco drivers are suffering from blood pressure, diabetes and heart disease.
They also stressed that the government needs to bring about an urgent change in their pathetic conditions of work, so that loco pilots can work without stress. They said that despite repeated protests by the loco pilots in support of their demands, the government has not bothered to deal with their problems seriously.
The speakers said that UPS has been introduced to confuse the government employees. Therefore, we will have to fight with renewed vigour, to get UPS and NPS cancelled and OPS reinstated.
The government has been continuously working to weaken the struggles of workers by bringing anti-labour laws. It is curtailing the rights of workers.
It was decided in the convention that we will continue to fight in support of our demands. Some of the main demands are as follows:
- Cancel NPS and UPS, reinstate OPS;
- Stop privatisation and corporatisation of railways;
- Grant 30 hours of weekly rest along with 16 hours of daily break to loco pilots;
- Maximum duty of eight hours should be made mandatory for goods trains and six hours for passenger trains;
- Recruitment should be carried out to fill up the vacant posts; and
- Return to headquarters must be made mandatory within 36 hours.
The convention concluded in an extremely militant atmosphere.