Loco Pilots' Unions Counter Railways' Claim On Meeting With Rahul Gandhi, LoP Vows To Raise Their Woes In Parliament

Train drivers' unions deny claims that Rahul Gandhi met non-Delhi loco pilots. The CPRO of Northern Railway alleged the presence of external pilots, but unions emphasised that the focus should be on driver grievances.

Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi during a meeting with the loco pilots at New Delhi Railway Station, in New Delhi. (PTI Photo)

Source : PTI

Train drivers' unions have refuted the claims made by the Railways that Congress leader Rahul Gandhi met with loco pilots who were not part of the Delhi Division and were brought from outside. This assertion followed Gandhi’s visit to the loco pilots' crew lobby at the New Delhi Railway Station on Friday.

Chief Public Relations Officer (CPRO) of Northern Railway, Deepak Kumar, had stated that it appeared Gandhi met loco pilots who were not from the New Delhi Railway Station's crew lobby. "It looks like they were brought from outside," Kumar remarked, as per news agency PTI.

"He (Rahul Gandhi) saw our crew lobby. He had 7-8 cameramen with him. He visited our crew lobby and checked into how we book our crew lobby. After coming out of the crew lobby, he had a discussion with a few people. There were around 7-8 crew members who were not from our lobby, but it seemed that they were from outside. Since he has 7-8 cameramen, he was filming them and making reels," he told news agency ANI.

During his visit, Gandhi spoke with several loco pilots to understand their challenges and issues. Various loco pilots' associations, whose members were present during the visit, have countered the CPRO's statement, emphasising that the focus should be on the grievances of the loco pilots rather than their divisions or zones.

After Rahul Gandhi Left, Railway Ministry Officials Met Us In First Prompt Response: Loco Pilots' Union Member

According to PTI, R Kumaresan, President of the South Zone of the All India Loco Running Staff Association, who played a crucial role in organising the interaction between Gandhi and the loco pilots, stated, "I want to submit humbly that Mr Gandhi interacted with loco pilots from various rail divisions and not only with those who were from Delhi." He added, "Mr Gandhi visited the crew lobby and in the same building, there is a running room for pilots who come from outside to rest. He spoke to everyone irrespective of which divisions they come from."

Kamlesh Singh, Central Treasurer of the Indian Railway Loco Runningmen Organisation (IRLRO), who was present during Gandhi’s visit, highlighted that loco pilots across all rail networks face similar challenges and grievances. "Whether it is about long duty hours, denial of weekly rest, or lack of washroom and lunch breaks, these are common issues that all train drivers face across the divisions and zones. So this doesn't merit an issue whether he met a loco pilot of Delhi Division or some other divisions," Singh asserted, as quoted by PTI.

Supporting this, IRLRO's Working President Sanjay Pandhi explained that at all Running Rooms of Indian Railways, only loco running staff from other stations rest. "An MP, who is also a leader of the opposition, can meet anyone anywhere including all railway employees," Pandhi said. Kumaresan clarified that Gandhi did not enter the running room as it would have disturbed loco pilots resting before their next shift, PTI's report stated.

Furthermore, loco pilots reported that Railway Ministry officials attended to their grievances following Gandhi's visit. "After Mr Gandhi left, officials of the Railway Ministry visited us at the New Delhi Railway Station to attend to our grievances," Singh noted. He added that it was the first time that any official from the Railway Board showed such a prompt response to their problems. "We shared the same issues with the official which we shared with Mr Gandhi," he said, as per PTI.

Kumaresan reiterated that the issues discussed with Gandhi were already known to the Ministry as the loco associations have regularly written to them. "Long duty hours leading to work stress and no washroom and lunch break while being on train driving duty are some of our problems which we shared with Mr Gandhi and the Railway Ministry's officials," Singh stated, as per the report.

Rahul Gandhi Vows To Raise Loco Pilots' Rights & Working Conditions In Parliament

On Sunday, the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, highlighted the challenging conditions faced by loco pilots and vowed that the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) bloc would raise these issues in Parliament to improve their rights and working conditions. Gandhi's remarks were made on Sunday in a post on X, accompanied by a video of his recent interaction with loco pilots at the New Delhi Railway Station.

नरेंद्र मोदी की सरकार में लोको पायलट्स के जीवन की रेल पूरी तरह पटरी से उतर चुकी है।

गर्मी से खौलते केबिन में बैठ कर लोको पायलट्स 16-16 घंटे काम करने को मजबूर हैं।

जिनके भरोसे करोड़ों ज़िंदगियां चलती हैं, उनकी अपनी ज़िन्दगी का कोई भरोसा नहीं रह गया है।

यूरिनल जैसी बेसिक… pic.twitter.com/nwiG72cBv7

— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) July 7, 2024

"In Narendra Modi's government, the life of loco pilots has been completely derailed," the former Congress chief asserted. He described the dire conditions under which loco pilots work, stating they are forced to endure 16-hour workdays in overheated cabins. "The people on whom millions of lives depend have no confidence in their own lives," Gandhi noted. He highlighted the lack of basic facilities such as urinals, the absence of limits on working hours, and the lack of leave, which he said are causing physical and mental exhaustion among the pilots.

"Deprived of even basic facilities like urinals, loco pilots have no limit on working hours and neither do they get leaves. Due to which they are getting physically and mentally broken and are falling ill," Gandhi said in his post in Hindi.

He expressed concern that making loco pilots drive trains under such conditions puts both their lives and the lives of passengers at risk. He asserted that the INDIA bloc will advocate for the rights and better working conditions of loco pilots in Parliament.

"By watching this small discussion, you can also feel their pain," Gandhi urged, sharing the video of his interaction with the loco pilots. In the video, the pilots voiced their complaints about the lack of rest, absence of leave, and inhumane working conditions.

On Saturday, the President of the South Zone of the All India Loco Running Staff Association stated that loco drivers had handed a memorandum to Gandhi, attributing recent train accidents to poor working conditions, PTI reported.