In a major austerity drive aimed at ending VIP culture in Railway brass, the Railway Ministry has directed its top officials to travel in Third AC Class or Sleeper Coaches instead of the sophisticated saloons or executive class coaches they are entitled to. The order applies to members of the Railway Board, General Managers of Railway zones and Divisional Railway Managers in each of the 50 divisions. A senior Railway official said the move is aimed at giving the officers first-hand information about the amenities provided to passengers and the problems faced by them.
Sources claimed that annual maintenance of the saloons stationed at various locations for Railway brass was around Rs 45 crore annually.
“It has been decided that Board members, General Managers and Divisional Railway Managers will undertake long journeys in Sleeper and Third AC classes to take stock of the passenger amenities in these coaches. At the same time, services like cleanliness and catering will also be assessed,” said Anil Saxena, Director General (PR) Indian Railways.
The move comes at a time when the Railway Ministry is facing criticism on several fronts, especially passenger safety, hygiene and cleanliness on stations and trains. The Ministry, which is already under pressure following a series of train accidents in the last few months, found itself on a sticky wicket when a CAG report recently exposed the Railways for poor quality of food being served on trains.
The CAG report pointed out that the food served in trains was unfit for consumption. At the same time, it noted the presence of unauthorised vendors and inadequate number of dustbins at stations, besides rampant overcharging for services and goods. Sources in the Ministry said safety in moving trains was another key concern of passengers.
They said there were complaints of unauthorised entry of people in reserved coaches and harassment of female passengers, but in most of these cases, the train staff failed to act. Complaints have also been pouring in against poor sanitation facilities in trains, particularly stinking toilets and dirty linen.
The Railway officials, while travelling in trains, will interact with passengers and assess their satisfaction on the prescribed parameters of services. “Board members and General Managers will travel every two to three months, preferably on longer routes, so that they can spend maximum time on trains. This will be done to assess the shortcomings, followed by corrections if required,” officials said.
However, a section of officials also felt that the saloon was a necessary requirement for the Railway officials in case of exigencies. “There have been times that officers have to station themselves at dry locations for maintenance of rail infrastructure, inspection and most significantly during accident relief mechanism,” said an official.
Railway Board Chairman Ashwani lohani had also accorded utmost priority to passenger safety and amenities in trains and stations. Soon after taking charge, he held a series of meetings with Railway officials and instructed them to spend maximum time in field to assess the situation.
lohani had even asked his officers to give up luxuries and unnecessary protocols and end VIP culture. lohani ordered suspension of four officials last Saturday for receiving him at Mumbai airport in violation of his directive to end protocol. lohani had flown to Mumbai to attend a high-level meeting called by Railway Minister Piyush Goyal soon after the Mumbai foot overbridge mishap.