‘Scrap free pass for rail employees’

Railway activists on Sunday demanded that perks like free suburban passes for railway employees as well as their families be taken away from both Central and Western railway employees, to save more time and money.

They were reacting to the Central Railway’s proposal of limiting the validity of return tickets to six hours.

Subhash Gupta from Rail Pravasi Sangh and also a member of CR’s Divisional Railway Users Consultative Committee (DRUCC) said, “Officials said that the idea was proposed to save time and, on the other hand, the railway employees are issued passes that can be used for unlimited number of journeys for free.”

A railway official revealed on the condition of anonymity that around 3.5 lakh railway employees and family members avail of this facility in Central Railway’s (CR) head office at CST and Western Railway’s (WR) at Mumbai Central.

“The railway passes is resulting in a loss of approximately Rs 7 to Rs 7.5 crore yearly as a result of this facility to its employees,” said the official.

The passes include both second and first class but most of the passes get issued for first class,” he further added.

Mr Gupta said the railway city officials should discuss the proposal and the passes with the unions.

“It is in common knowledge that free passes are not given to not only to the employees but also to the immediate family and it is a burden that the Mumbai railway can no longer bear” he said.

“The railway employees should at least get together with the union and discuss the issue,” he further added.