Demand for employment in the Indian Railways remains rocketing high, as statistics from the government showed a whopping 1.87 crore applications made against 64,197 openings in major job categories in 2024. Released by the Minister of Railways to Parliament last week, the statistics highlight the high level of competition and continued offer to meet significant manpower vacancies in the nation's largest public sector employer.
Staffing Pressure Mounts as Retirements Increase and Network Expands
The Ministry has brought out in its written reply that recruitment delays and increasing pressure are caused by overlapping reasons. On the one hand, substantial groups of staff have retired over the last few years on account of attaining the age of superannuation. On the other hand, the Railway network is expanding fast and modernising with new electrification schemes, digital technology, safety systems, and mechanisation, all of which demand a more skilled and stronger workforce.
Massive Recruitment Drive: 92,116 Posts Notified, 1.08 Lakh in Progress
As per the media reports, recruitment for 1.08 lakh posts is underway, while 92,116 vacancies have been formally notified for the January–December 2024 period under 10 Centralised Employment Notifications (CENs). These include a diverse array of positions such as:
-Assistant Loco Pilots (ALPs)
-Technicians
-Railway Protection Force (RPF) staff
-Junior Engineers (JE), Paramedical personnel
-Non-Technical Popular Categories (NTPC – Graduate & Undergraduate)
Record Competition: More than 1,000 Contenders Per Post in Certain Categories
The 2024–25 recruitment season witnessed some of the record levels of competition:
-RPF Constable: More than 1,076 contenders per post
-NTPC (Graduate level): Around 720 contenders per post
-Technicians: Almost 189 contenders per vacancy
-ALPs: Around 98 candidates per vacancy
The figures indicate the Railway's persistent appeal as a secure career choice, notwithstanding the extremely competitive selection process.
Recruitment Progress: CBTs Completed, Results Announced in Major Categories
The Ministry also gave an update on recruitment progress as follows:
-Computer-Based Tests (CBTs) for 55,197 positions have been conducted in four phases, conducted at 150+ cities and in 15 regional languages.
-Results have already been announced for categories such as ALP, RPF-SI, RPF Constable, and JE/DMS/CMA.
-Stage 2 CBTs for ALP and JE/DMS/CMA are also completed, with final results released.
In the Technician group, more than 9,000 candidates have been empanelled out of the notified 14,298 posts, illustrating the phased character of Railway recruitments, where induction usually occurs in phases.
