In a meeting of general managers with Railway Board Chairman Ashwani Lohani soon after the derailment of the Vasco-Da-Gama-Patna Express on November 24, the zonal heads raised the issue of filling up of vacant posts in the Railways, according to the minutes of the meeting available with PTI.
“The process of recruitment takes too long, taking almost two years since submission of application. Many candidates get alternative jobs, leading to poor materialisation of indents (vacancy notice). With online tests, etc, the process should be speeded up,” general manager of Northeast Frontier Railway Chahatey Ram suggested in the meeting in the presence of 17 GMs.
In response, Lohani said that the Railway Recruitment Board (RRB) should review the process “with a target to complete it within six months”.
The board has instructed its departments to submit their proposals on the issue by December 15.
Hit by a severe staff crunch, Railways is mulling shortening the process by introducing online tests among other steps.
As of December 2017, Railways has a staff strength of more than 1.3 million, while it has 225110 vacancies in Group ‘C’ and Group ‘D’ categories.
According to data available with Railways, it has 122811 vacancies in safety categories and a shortage of another 17400 loco running staff.
The vacancies range from profiles such as drivers, guards, gangmen, and other technical staff.
Other general managers pointed out that zonal railways should be allowed to place vacancy notices directly to the RRB instead of going to the Railway Board, thereby reducing the time it takes to hire staff.
Sources said that the board is considering the matter and is reviewing ways to “fast track” the process.