Loco pilots protest panel report on working conditions
Madurai: The running staff—loco pilots and assistant loco pilots—of the
Southern Railway Mazdoor Union
(SRMU) held a protest on Monday, condemning the Railway Board's multi-disciplinary committee report, which ruled out their demand for breaks during duty hours to have food and attend to nature's call.
According to loco pilots, they are not allowed to have food in the loco cabin and hardly get 30 seconds during stoppages to attend to nature's calls. Some of the superfast express trains travel non-stop for 200 to 300km, making their plight unbearable. "For instance, the stop between Chennai Central and Vijayawada is nearly 430km, and the running staff don't get any break to have food or attend to nature's call. The situation turns worse when there are women crew," said SRMU's assistant divisional secretary Ramkumar.
The running staff also opposed the committee report proposing to replace the co-pilot in high-speed trains with assistant loco pilots. High-speed trains, plying at 130kmph, require two seasoned loco staff, and by appointing ALPs in place of co-pilots, the board is endangering the safety of trains, they said. The protesting running staff also demanded the board reduce their working hours to six hours, like controllers who work only six hours since their job roles are classified as an intensive category. The loco staff pointed out that they also undertake such intensive jobs of operating locos non-stop and are forced to work for 11 to 12 hours, especially in goods trains.
They also demanded the removal of CCTV cameras fixed inside loco cabins, reasoning that it puts them under the pressure of being watched throughout their work hours.
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