The रायता !

We are foxed.. how to proceed…

Indians don’t spill milk, their metaphor is spilled raita!

So raita be it. Let us talk of great transformation which did not take the winds from the sails of IR-it burnt the sails!

The #NDA under Narendra Modi got truly bitten by Khan Market Gang (#KMG) when OO 58/2016 was published. This was preceded by the high talk which was proven eminently hollow in subsequent years, by the Knights of #Transformation. Came famous Model #SOP which messed up #financial prudence in the name of #delegation. It ended up making #Stores Service financially most endowed. Officers of this Service by its nature do not get opportunity to sit in decision making positions where field difficulties are faced head-on. Though a few do get to become #ADRM or #DRM, that happens almost two decades after joining, till that time ossification takes over.

Anyways, one of the first big mistakes of the new government was to have #AKMital a career stores officer from Indian Railway Stores Service (#IRSS) as #CRB and give him an #extension which got truncated due to #Khatauli-accident. While he was CRB, transformation directorate under able leadership of #Advisor to Minister for Railways (#MR) in previous avatar, cleverly made #IRSS most powerful service of #IndianRailways (IR) in terms of its control over #procurement. The events that were unleashed led to creation of a Member for IRSS—a laughable decision by all counts.

So after chucking out the under extension contractual CRB, it is no wonder that decision to have a member of IRSS was also withdrawn.

But in the confusion and melee, the Advisor in his past life when he was an Electrical officer made a clever move with a close associate from #Mechanical department—allegedly a move well lubricated by certain #corporate interest which as time passed became biggest beneficiary of IR’s infrastructure and rolling stock push. The move was to lump all locomotives—diesel and electric—with Electrical department and take away #EMU, #MEMUs and #Trainsets, and give to Mechanical. The decision was opposed tooth and nail. Some arguments were emotional and some deeply technical.

Most of the transformative decisions these #KMG wallahs took had to be redone, as we wrote in:

March 15, 2025: “The Gazeteers”

IRMS—the royal mess it has put IR in, has been largely redone, at Member level it is Electrical department which essentially lost its Member as it is clear that Member Finance, Member Infrastructure and Member Operations & Business Development (#MOBD) are going to be encadred with #IRAS, #IRSE and #IRTS—the #IRMS with and without brackets be damned.

But why this long preface?

On July 25, 2025 came a long winding letter clarifying operationalisation of OO 58/2016 –

What is surprising and shocking is that even after 9 years of OO 58 which came in 2016, still the confusion persists.

The Echoes of OO 58-2016

Nine years ago, the czars of transformation who got for IR, insanely expensive deals of #Madhepura and #Marhowra, financially reckless model SOP, IRMS, murder of National Academi of Indian Railways (#NAIR), proprietary tests for emotional intelligence tender of which remains hidden from scrutiny, they brought in –

This order not just caused heart burn, but at the same time disrupted the well stabilised system of managing rolling stock. Suddenly, MEMU and EMU which were maintained by Electrical department for almost 100 years, went under #PCMEs with their electrical officers.

Then when new class of assets came about, long distance EMUs, called #VandeBharat were put directly under Mechanical department. A brand new #Trainset-Directorate was created by the transformation man—four technical degree holder technocrat—Mr #AshwiniLohani—in one day. When this was opposed, the directorate was closed and work came to PS&EMU directorate which in past always had worked with #Carriage-Directorate to make #specifications and #SMIs for EMUs and MEMUs.

A chosen officer was posted even without applying against the advertised vacancies, which led to cancellation of wants and officer asked to apply against re-advertised position at #RDSO. This officer has just retired and the trainsets have been in matter of weeks shifted to Carriage Directorate with PS&EMU Directorate. in supporting role as clarified in Railway Board’s letter no. 2025/O&M/8/2 of 25 July, 2025.

It is amusing that paper reclassification shows Vande Bharat trains as separate category to justify this facetious categorisation. Another great achievement of the Transformation Czars was creation of Environment & Housekeeping Management (#EnHM) Directorate complete with its level-16 additional member! Today while government gets hammered on Social Media, no one now knows who is responsible for cleaning of stations, is it—operating, commercial, medical or mechanical—so much for rationalisation.

Order of 25 July, 2025 is highly suspicious and shows the slip once again.

Nine years and the confusion still persists. On one hand Indian Railways suffered colossal loss in talent for management of #diesel locomotives, competence in management of #electric propulsion and EMUs is fast fading as result. This has surreptitiously opened doors for private players. No privatisation, no corporatisation—unique form of ceding control over railways’ crown jewels is underway—some call it East India Model of management. All new rolling stock is now increasingly coming bundled with its long term #maintenance contract—as long as 35 years.

Implementing this OO 58 of 2016 was a key enabling order. Opaquely taken out, no one knows what was deliberated when this decision was taken.

Exorcising the Curse of Transformation

While IRMS has proven to be the star failure, OO 58 of 2016 continues to bleed Indian Railways ushering in East India Management philosophy against government’s declared intent, high rise Over Head Electrification (#OHE) will keep reminding the country about the #competence of officers who forced a system where overhead wire is two metres higher than international and national norms.

This was again claimed in the seminal, “Never a Bystander” as key achievement of the one who rose, like #Phoenix, from the ashes of failed bid to become a general manager, as advisor to the current minister. The #pantograph which should reach out to this 7.2 metre high overhead conductor just shut down #Bhusawal division for good 9 hours few days ago—“Overhead Electric Wire Breakdown Paralysis Train Movement Between Mumbai and Bhusawal”.

It is interesting to note that while Western Dedicated Freight Corridor (#WDFC) has been wired at greater height, a pantograph which can work with it was one small detail which was omitted.

No wonder when same contrived minds who came with IRMS and OO 58/2016 also came with High Rise Overhead Electrification. Having wired at this height, IR still does not have a trusted and reliable pantograph. This legacy of #toxic-decision making is also seen in GatiShakti Vishwavidyalaya and GatiShakti Directorate of #RailBhawan and not to forget the mess IR’s Station Development has become.

The confusion caused by OO 58/2016 also led to unquestioned adoption of 2×25 KV electrification even on routes which have recently been electrified and do not carry any traffic. Why cannot people see the obvious?

Ep104: स्टाफ क्वार्टर्स की दुर्दशा और ऑफिसर्स आवासों की विसंगति!

If government wants to redeem IR, there is need to have serious look at #Policy-decisions pushed by the #KMG. While nothing can be done for high rise overhead electrification today, perhaps someone will have to rewind this decision also like the induction of Engineering Services Exams (#ESE). The evil dark shadow of OO 58/2016 led to Mechanical and Electrical departments losing their focus. And in the bargain country got stinky toilets, dirty stations, dirty coaches, trains that uncouple on a whim, burning power cars, traction power breakdowns, wrong expensive decisions of 2×25 KV electrification, high rise overhead electrification.

So this is the #रायता which has now spread completely! And it can only be gathered by able #political-leadership now.