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The Central Government has showcased its commitment to enhancing the working conditions of loco running crew by recognising the vital role loco pilots play in ensuring the safe and efficient movement of passenger and goods traffic on Indian Railways.
Notably, loco pilots are important members of the Indian Railway family who play a pivotal role in moving passenger and goods traffic in a safe and efficient manner. Indian Railways is committed to ensuring proper working conditions for loco pilots. Minister of Railways, Information & Broadcasting, and Electronics & Information Technology, Ashwini Vaishnaw, informed Rajya Sabha about it in a written reply on Friday. In his reply, the minister said that Loco Pilots are classified in the continuous category. "Section 132 (2) of the Railway Act, 1989, prescribes duty hours of 54 hours on average in a two-weekly period of fourteen days for staff working under the continuous category. Rule 8 of Hours of Work and Period of Rest" (HOER), 2005, lays down the guidelines of duty hours of 52 hours on average in a two-weekly period of fourteen days per week for Loco Pilots, i.e., duty hours are less than the maximum of 54 hours for other 'continuous' category employees on Indian Railways. Loco Pilots are also compensated for extra working hours as per the rates specified in Section 132 of the Railway Act, 1989." Provision for subsidised meals and the availability of RO water filters in running rooms are also ensured. Further steps and initiatives have been taken for the improvement of the working conditions of the loco running crew. Ergonomic crew-friendly design features like better seats and driver desks for the comfort of loco pilots have been provided. Since 2014, 7,286 three-phase locos with these facilities have been manufactured, compared to only 719 locos prior to 2014. All new locos have been provided with air-conditioned cabs since 2017-18. So far, more than 7,000 locos have been provided with air conditioners. Fitment of Vigilance Control Devices (VCD) as a technological aid to alert loco pilots in case of loss of alertness while driving. Since 2014, VCD has been provided in more than 12,000 (10,521 electric and 1,873 diesel) locos. A GPS-based Fog Safe Device (FSD) is being provided to loco pilots as a technical aid for displaying and announcing the name and distance of approaching signals and important landmarks. Since 2014, 21,742 FSDs have been provided in IR. Simulator-based training for improving the driving skills and reaction time of Loco Pilots is being emphasised, and the simulator training facility has increased significantly. A mobile application named 'Chalak Dal' has been developed for the facilitation of crew. The app was modified in 2023 to enable the crew to access all their details related to running duties, sign on / sign-off, loco troubleshooting directory and other documents required during train operations that otherwise were required to be carried in hard copy. Various safety drives and special counselling programmes are regularly organised to check the alertness and safety awareness among the running staff. Special safety seminars& meetings are also organised for interaction with family members of running staff to educate them on the role of quality rest in the lives of running staff. Special drives are launched regularly to counsel running staff and boost their morale and confidence. (ANI)
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