SOS! The uncertainty in Railway is on account of ill thought of transformation!
Time tested methods of having multiple levels of monitoring have been made absent at Railway Board and Zonal level with Divisional levels being fatigued
On 28 September, #Railwhispers reported a fact check on Indian Railways: Where it was reported:
#GM рдХреЗ 13, #Member рдХреЗ 5 рдФрд░ #AM рдХреЗ 25 рдкрдж рдЦрд╛рд▓реА рд╣реИрдВ, рд╕рд╛рд░реЗ #DRM рдУрд╡рд░рдбреНрдпреВ рд╣реЛ рдЪреБрдХреЗ!
рдЕрдпреЛрдЧреНрдп рд▓реЛрдЧреЛрдВ рдХреЗ рднрд░реЛрд╕реЗ рдкреНрд░рд╢рд╛рд╕рди рдФрд░ #PMModi рдХрд╛ рдЯрд╛рд░рдЧреЗрдЯ рд░рд╛рдорднрд░реЛрд╕реЗ рдХрдм рддрдХ рдЪрд▓реЗрдЧрд╛?
рдкреНрд░рдмрдВрдзрди рдХреА рдирдИ рдиреАрддрд┐ #AshwiniVaishnaw рдХреЗ рдмрд╕ рдХреА рдирд╣реАрдВ, рддреЛ рдпрд╛ рддреЛ рдиреАрддрд┐ рдмрджрд▓реА рдЬрд╛рдП, рдпрд╛ рдордВрддреНрд░реА!
Just two days later, on 30 September a looking after member, Member Infrastructure also retired along with several senior officials – many of whom were in looking after arrangement.
Nowadays Indian Railways run like a finely balanced machine. General Managers, DRMs perform key roles of keeping rail operations and its safety in check.
These officers keep close liaison with Railway Board, RDSO, CRS to keep system running safely and provide inputs on network planning to Railway Board which then takes decisions on large procurements – they give performance check on systems and large products like Locomotives, Signalling systems, Track, Coaches and OHE etc.
Today, as the tweet brought out, vacancies at Member level, Additional Member level are at an alarming stage. Agreed that Railways created unnecessary numbers of posts of Additional Members, but critical level is the level which existed before this expansion – that level now stands breached.
Giving charge to a non-Civil Engineer to an Additional Level Mechanical Engineer has raised alarm bells. Earlier, gaps at Member level were handled by Additional Members from the domain. Now the top two levels are non-existent.
Looking after arrangement at General Manager (GM) levels has stretched capacities of existing GMs who are working with long overdue DRMs. This has effectively paralysed the system.
Markers which point to poor maintenance, poor operations (SPAD) are indicative of cracks which are emerging. Absence of accidents is not only largely on account of physical input in renewals and induction of new assets but also the speed limits which were restricted by the former minister.
But as all railwaymen know – after Lalu Prasad Yadav of UPA-1 milked the strengthened network created during NDA (1999-2004), there was a spurt of accidents which greeted the NDA government in 2014.
Winters are round the corner and the current situation is dangerous and alarming.
The paralysis is on account of ill thought of transformation. During CRBship of Suneet Sharma, earlier time tested criteria were used to man positions of GMs, DRMs & Members. He effectively decided that regular work should not be stopped waiting for new rules.
Then appear Mr Sudhir Kumar, the so-called transformation expert brought in to advise the Minister for the “Net Zero Carbon Emission” for Indian Railways. His handiwork was immediately apparent in the following decisions:
тАв Unprecedented extension to a Member of Railway Board (Member Finance) despite his inept handling of IRCTC issue leading to sharp fluctuation in its share prices – never before and after him a Member was given extension (looking after system and extension is itself explanatory and this system relates directly to conflict of interests).
тАв Interference in working of Members – creating stand off situation where a Member unprecedentedly went on leave (in case of Member-Traction & Rolling Stock), another Member was threatened to be sent off (Member Infra), humiliating Member Operations & Business Development
тАв Policy meetings especially on procurements with no minutes – threat of transfer in case of disagreement or even a hint of creating record of involvement of Adviser in policy making (in case of Vinay Srivastav).
тАв Putting on hold of DRM panels, GM panels, panels for Members (tweeted on 28 September).
тАв Writing to Cabinet Secretary to drop proposal of grant of Secretary grade to the General Managers – key cabinet decision to enable balanced search for Member level appointments and balancing bureaucracy with States.
тАв Tenders for almost one lakh crore of rolling stock floated/decided with no oversight of regular Board (No regular MTRS, no regular MF).
As a result, at the beginning of winter season, railway stands paralysed – time tested methods of having multiple levels of monitoring have been made absent at Railway Board and Zonal level with Divisional levels being fatigued.
Uncertain tenures have meant that junior officers cannot get mentoring they need to man the senior positions tomorrow. For consecutive three years there is no entry of engineers though UPSC.
Insiders point to the fact that trio of Sudhir Kumar-Jitendra Singh-Navin Kumar each of whom have spent 15 years or more in Railway Board have effectively taken over CRB and Minster’s offices.
CRBтАЩs key team was transferred with in hours when new CRB was named on 31st December 2021. Whoever comes in, what gets discussed is all in knowledge of this triumvirate and controlled by them.
Today this organisation which once had its own budget does not even know what IRMS – what is written in files and who proposed what..???
Time tested method of manning higher level post was to look at the officers who had handled Divisions as DRMs and led Zones as General Managers.
Unfortunately today, all screening is done by people who do not have any achievement or contribution of their own (GM panel screened by people who never had been GMs themselves and also whose integrity isn’t beyond doubt! – reported by #Railwhispers).
Mr Jitendra Singh & Mr Navin Kumar have nothing to show as electrical engineers in their entire career. Mr Sudhir Kumar has usurped the work of the late Gajendra Haldea. His batch mates have always been wary of him as he manipulated APARs of 11 of them in an attempt to supersede them.
These people have captured the Railway MinisterтАЩs office and control every paper that goes in side and impact MinisterтАЩs opinion of his officers. They represent the rot which this government wanted to cure – can there be a reform with this team? Has the work of this trio ever been scrutinised?
Member Infrastructure, a hallowed institution is now being manned successively for the second time as looking after arrangement and this time by a non-Civil Engineer – no experience of P-Way manual, Bridge Manual etc!
Now winters are coming on the head – with top level depleted and bottom seeing vacuum – there can only be one cry – SOS! To be continue..
#PMOIndia #NarendraModi #DoPT #SOS #SudhirKumar #JitendraSingh #NavinKumar #RailwayBoard #RailMinIndia #Policyparalysis #Railway #Reform #Transformation #Member #GM #DRM