- Officers continued to make rosters while sitting at home, special works are still continued like TTM Packing, cable meggering, endangered dozens of employees and families
- COVID-19 has not been tested even with the station master, signal staffs and trackmen who work together
- whole RRI Tower cabin likely to be infected, steps not yet taken to protect
- On April 21, Pointman, who was involved in TTM Block of Pt.312, feared exposure to several trackmen
Railhunt Bureau, Ahmedabad
Railway personnel are now forced to bear the brunt of the arbitrariness of the officials in the Ahmedabad Division of Western Railway. Despite the Prime Minister’s guidelines for lockdown and constant opposition from unions, the rules of social distancing in the Engineering and Signal Department were constantly ignored and signal staffs and trackmen are forced to work on TTM Packing and Cable Meggering work which is not an essential but specialised works. Constant TTM schedules are made and in this work a large number of railway personnel were present at one place. It is also continuously opposed and warned from various forums, but the officials did not listen and even did the special works which is not essential in nature in which compliance of social distancing is practically not possible.
Also read: Cable megging decree issued in the department amid Corona infection
This RRI Pointsman lives in ‘Pathani ki Chaal’, in front of Vikram Mill, Saraspur in Ahmedabad where several houses have already been quarantined after frequent cases of COVID-19. After this incident, the administration has also quarantined the pointsman’s residence. The corona test of his wife, a daughter and two sons has not been done so far despite the death of one family member, the other going on ventilator yesterday. In the aftermath of this incident, many RRI staff performed duty in contact with Pointsman have been quarantined. Interestingly, this Pointsman was in piloting of the train during TTM block on Pt.312 taken on April 21who may have come in contact with several other trackmen and Signal staffs but so far no one is identified and checked for any infection by the railways. Even no Trackmen or Signal staffs are quarantined yet for having in contact with this Pointsman.
After all, why did railway officials not pay attention to it despite repeated warnings? On whose orders did the TTM deliberately push the railwaymen into the furnace of infection? Currently more than two dozen railway personnel have been sent to Quarantine, if the situation of them and the family worsens, who will be responsible for this infection?
The union has consistently requested not to carry out TTM work and non-essential works in the current situation. Despite this, cable Megring and TTM work continued to be run. The Chairman of the Railway Board has also instructed the staff required for essential goods trains to be put on duty only on rotation, but the compliance of this order is nowhere to be seen. Today a large number of railway personnel are at the mouth of infection – Alok Chandra Prakash, General Secretary, Indian Railways S&T Maintainers’ Union
Alok Chandra, National General Secretary of Indian Railways S&T Maintainers’ Union, has directly blamed top officials for the worsening situation of COVID-19 infection. Alok Chandra told to Railhunt that he had already requested to Railway officials and tweeted not to carry out TTM work and those non-essential works in the present situation. Despite this, the work of Magring and TTM continued. While the Chairman, Railway Board has also instructed all the officers to put only the essential staff on duty for essential goods trains, that too in rotation. But this did not show any effect on S&T officials as well as on Engineering officials. By keeping the pressure, the officials are continuing the routine work as well as special works, the result of which has come to the fore today to keep large number of employees in quarantine. Alok Chandra has also requested DRM Ahmedabad to provide immediate assistance to the Pointsman family sent in Quarantine. Pointman’s children are alone in the house, while Pointman and his family members have not been investigated yet. In such a situation, a member of his family has been already lost his life, it has been requested to refer the mother of Pointsman to Narayana Hospital for better treatment.
100% attendance of trackmen violates lockdown