Removal in signal-jump cases too harsh, contributory factors should be considered: Loco unions

New Delhi, Oct 29 (PTI) Blaming loco pilots solely for overshooting red signals and punishing them with removal from service or compulsory retirement is harsh and inhuman, loco pilot unions have said in a letter to the Railway Board, urging it to consider other contributory factors as well.

The All India Loco Running Staff Association (AILRSA) has said loco pilots do not deliberately commit the offence of "Signal Passing At Danger" (a technical term in the railways for a situation when a train jumps the red signal), but it happens despite taking all precautions due to several other contributory factors.

The association has said the inquiry committees set up to look into SPAD cases often fail to take into account technical issues, such as joint brake power test, Data Logger reports, brake gears, brake force on wheels, wrong signal sequences, among others, before awarding punishment, and instead, solely blame the loco pilots.

"In several cases, the fact-finding inquiry committees have held loco pilots responsible for SPAD and removed them from service or forced them into compulsory retirement, without giving them a reasonable opportunity to defend themselves. The railway administration does not even consider the years of dedication and devotion of the running crew while handing over the punishment," Ashok Kumar Raut, General Secretary, AILRSA, East Central Railway, said in his letter.

"Not only that, the appellate authority also overlooks the documentary evidence raised by the running crew in their defence and concurs with the punishment awarded by the disciplinary authority, which is a violation of the principle of natural justice," Raut added.

He said many inquiry officers are unaware of the due process of the inquiry proceedings, as there is no provision in the railway administration for training them on how to conduct such proceedings.

He referred to an SPAD case of January 12 in the Danapur Division, in which the inquiry officer held the loco pilot guilty, without considering several contributory factors or attaching any documentary evidence in the findings, and the disciplinary authority subsequently passed an order for removal from service.

Raut also claimed that according to railway norms, overshooting a red signal by a certain distance under specific conditions does not mandate punishments such as removal from service. However, these norms are not being honoured by the administration itself, he said.

"Of late, several judgments of the Central Administrative Tribunal and courts have pointed out violations of the principle of natural justice by the disciplinary authority, appellate authority and revisional authority of the railway administration," Raut said.

He suggested that instead of awarding harsh punishments, the railway administration should examine the root causes, consider the suggestions given by various committees and implement the recommendations of the Research Designs and Standards Organisation (RDSO) based on the psycho technical analysis report.

"Along with these, the railway should also look into factors, such as long hours of duty, inadequate rest, more than two continuous night duties, excessive workload, increasing stress level, shortage of manpower, quality of rest in running rooms, mental harassments by officer, crew-friendly cabs with toilet facilities etc.," Raut urged.

Other loco unions have also highlighted the "Report of High Power Committee to Review the Duty Hours of Running and Other Safety Related Categories of Staff" constituted by the Railway Board that observed in 2013 that "in many cases, even if the circumstances and other reasons for such infringements (SPAD) may point to the system deficiency or even when there is no consequential/adverse effect/damage, the prescribed minimum punishment has to be administered upon the engine crew".

"This fear keeps lurking in the minds of the running staff all the time and over a period of time, it increases their stress level considerably which is not good for the system," the committee had said, recommending that punishments should take into account the gravity of the offence (repercussions of the SPAD) and the loco pilot's past records also. PTI JP RC