Rail Board flags SCR on 9-hr rule

Running staff signed off in 9 hrs in only 55.2% of trips

The Railway Board’s safety department has flagged several of its zones, including South Central Railway (SCR), for their unsatisfactory implementation of the ninehour duty rule among running staff during 2019-20. Running staff — locomotive drivers and railway guards — are expected to sign off within nine hours of beginning duty to prevent fatigue and to ensure safety of train operations.

A memorandum issued by Dimpy Garg, executive director, safety, Railway Board, noted that the implementation of the rule over “most of the zonal railways is not satisfactory”. It said: “The percentage of trips beyond 12 hours from ‘sign on’ to ‘sign off’ is considerably high, especially on EoCR (East Coast Railway), NCR (North Central Railway), NR (Northern Railway), SCR, SER (South Eastern Railway) and SECR (South East Central Railway).”

Running staff in SCR were able to sign off within nine hours in only 55.2 per cent of the trips, the national average being 62.4 per cent. They were made to work beyond 12 hours in 20.2 per cent of the trips.

Duty hours are counted from the moment they sign on to when they sign off. They might not be operating the train during this period. Due to logistical reasons and delays, staffers complete their nine-hour duty without having reached their destination. More often than not, a replacement crew is brought in. This is called “wheel move to wheel stop” time, after which running staff aren’t operating the train but are “on duty”. The memorandum notes that trips shorter than nine hours until “wheel stop” is only 78 per cent in SCR.

A senior official said it is often impossible to find a replacement crew. “There are so many logistical factors involved; for instance, there are many sections where trains cannot be stopped and the running staff has no option but to move forward,” he said. He added that there is a lot of uncertainty in the movement of freight trains.

The official explained that the flagged zones, including SCR, have some of the most dense networks, with heavy movement and loading. “These zones handle the maximum traffic and generate the most revenues. They are considered the bread and butter of the Indian Railways. So lapses in administration will be more evident in these zones,” he said.

Other sources said that overall congestion in the SCR network could be a cause. They also assigned some blame to overburdened section controllers who manage the train movement.

Ch Rakesh, chief public relations officer, SCR, said the zone had taken note of the matter and was taking corrective measures, many of which were already underway. “We have always been ensuring that the drivers get rest as soon as they are done serving nine hours, even if they are unable to sign off. Recently, we introduced a ‘round-trip’ system where they can return to their home stations during their regular duty hours,” he said.