What is the role of a Division, Zone and Railway Board: Getting Basics correct, Part-I
DRMs ideally are carefully chosen to prepare them for higher managerial roles of General Managers and Board level positions. Unfortunately this link has been broken with very bad results
संपादकीय टिप्पणी:
हमारे पास प्रतिदिन कई फीडबैक आते हैं और हमारे सारे लेख इन्ही फीडबैक को आधार बनाकर लिखे और प्रकाशित किए जाते हैं। प्रकाशन से पहले हम इनके सत्यापन का पूरा प्रयास करते हैं और वरिष्ठ अधिकारियों की सलाह भी लेते हैं। पिछले हफ्ते एक युवा अधिकारी ने हमारे वीडियो देखकर कुछ रोचक सवाल पूछे हैं। उन्होंने हमसे कहा कि रिटायर्ड सीनियर अधिकारियों से फीडबैक लेकर ये बतायें कि डिवीजन की, जोन की और बोर्ड की—प्राथमिकताएँ क्या होनी चाहिए! संभवतः यह प्रश्न इसीलिए भी आया कि हमने वीसी कल्चर पर, रेलवे बोर्ड की स्कूली क्लास की भांति मासिक सेफ्टी कांफ्रेंस, गिरती सेफ्टी के कारणों पर काफी कुछ कहा और लिखा है। हमें इस अधिकारी का प्रश्न बहुत अच्छा लगा—इसीलिए हमने उनके प्रश्न को कुछ रिटायर्ड महाप्रबंधकों और मेंबर्स को भेजा, और उनके उत्तर से यह लेख लिखा! ध्यान से पढ़ें-
Question:
A young Branch Officer (#BO) asked: What is the role of a Division, Zone and Railway Board?
We put this question to few senior retired officers who served as #DRM, #GM and as a #BoardMember before retirement.
Following is compilation of their views:
All felt very happy that young officers are asking basic questions. Understanding of basics cuts through clutter and helps to take decisions in fog of uncertainty which is the very nature of railway operations. There are so many variables—#RDSO approved vendor system, L-1 based #procurement system, #human failures in handling tenders, self interests of seniors and subordinates, local political influences, multitude of instructions etc.
In this, young officers get baptised in railway operations. No wonder they feel overwhelmed and need stable hands to guide them and mentor them. Unfortunately uncertainties in Level 16 and 17 means the #PHOD layer is very frustrated today and that frustration is showing. There is direct communication of Minister’s Cell to Divisions apart from CRB’s direct line—which dilutes position of General Managers—which we discuss below.
Divisions and its leadership
If #IndianRailways is running well today, then without doubt it is due to the divisional architecture which survived vicissitudes of ‘transformation’. Conventional wisdom which guided us and our seniors was to never interfere in division’s architecture. A division is essentially an operating and maintenance unit. Conventional wisdom has been that it is not the role of division to create capacity—division only undertakes maintenance and works which align with ease of mobility in their jurisdiction. Rest all should be ideally done by #Construction Organisations. This was the reason why #NFRailway had two general managers—one for O&M and another for Construction. In Zones this distinction needs to be maintained in sacred manner.
Division’s leadership is vested in a senior SAG level officer who was earlier called Divisional Superintendent (#DS) and now called a Divisional Railway Manager (#DRM). DRMs ideally are carefully chosen to prepare them for higher managerial roles of General Managers and Board level positions. Unfortunately this link has been broken with very bad results.
He should ideally have one and not more than two Additional Divisional Railway Managers (#ADRMs) in large divisions or those having distinct suburban operations.
The real resilience of railway leadership traditionally was built on the system of BOs or Branch Officers. These young officers were carefully screened by their PHODs to groom them and screen them for higher planning and decision making roles at Zones, RDSO and Railway Board. These young officers are young enough to face the rough and tumble of daily operations. They are expected to be physically fit to spend days on line and in control rooms. This leads to shaping of character and a leadership style which is distinct to railways.
Few aberrations occurred in past few years when Construction activities in the name of Gati Shakti Units (#GSUs) was put as a branch in Divisions. There could not have been something more unfortunate as it violated first principles of railway operations. GSUs reported to Railway Board directly through DRMs while Open Line Construction units continued to report to GMs. This very adversely impacted the Divisional Working. Single minded focus of division has to be on punctual train operations with Safety and Maintenance. It is this focus which stops trains from becoming killing machines. There are any number of things which go wrong in train running. Divisions must focus on safety and safety only—anything which affects this focus must be rejected immediately.
It is learnt that DRMs today have dual reporting—to #CRB and to #GM. This is not correct. This reduces the value of a General Manager—the only role which Railway Act recognises.
Zones and its leadership
General Managers head a zone. This role is recognised by Railway Act and is key in running Indian Railways. Zonal structure must engage in coordination, planning and facilitation of divisional activities.
What has been missing currently severely and occasionally in past is that, zonal officers try to push their burden on shoulders of the Branch Officers. This is very easy to do as BOs are much younger and much junior to their HODs and PHODs.
However, this is where the flow of work gets impacted negatively. Please note that budget controls are with PHODs for their plan heads. We have always believed that planning for works, their monitoring should be role of Zonal officers. In case they find their BO lacking or slipping, HOD/PHOD must dispatch a Deputy HOD to camp and assist. A General Manager must hold his PHODs to account for Plan Heads. There is increasing tendency of PHODs communicating with DRMs through General Managers or they only talk to their BOs—creating a gap. This is incorrect. A DRM unlike a DS of earlier days has a very limited tenure. For effective capacity augmentations and safety improvement works, PHODs must assist, facilitate and guide the DRMs. GM must ensure that PHODs communicate with DRMs regularly.
A general manager must hold divisions to account directly on safety and safety only. For rest he has his PHODs and HODs.
…contd. (perspective on Railway Board in next part)
#Railwhispers’ opinion: “It is these FAKE Videos that need to be curbed!”