Local commuters of the Central Railways Mumbai Division can breathe a sigh of relief. Motormen have decided to withdraw their work-to-rule agitation following a meeting with Divisional Railway Manager Rajnish Goyal.
The decision comes after a temporary halt in working extra hours (overtime) by motormen, leading to the cancellation of several suburban trains on Saturday.
Why did the unrest happen
The unrest among motormen was triggered by the death of their colleague Murlidhar Sharma, who was run over by a speeding train between Byculla and Sandhurst Road on Friday.
In response, motormen ceased working overtime, impacting regular operations of suburban trains. To address the situation and ensure the resumption of services, a meeting was convened on Sunday between the motormen and Divisional Manager Rajnish Goyal.
Goyal pledges to address the motormen’s concerns
Vivek Shishodia, Divisional Chairman of the Central Railway Mazdoor Sangh who is also a moterman, emphasised the non-acceptance of compulsory retirement or removal in cases of Signal Passing at Danger (when a train passes a signal showing a stop aspect or movement authority without authorisation). Assurances were provided by Goyal, who pledged to address the motormen’s concerns.
Shishodia said, "A proposal for amending rules related to SPAD incidents would be submitted to the Railway Board by the Central Railways Mumbai Division. Until the Railway Board makes a final decision on the matter, motormen can expect job security, with no immediate removals from service in case of SPAD.”
The resolution brings relief to both motormen and the commuting public, ensuring that suburban train operations will resume as usual from today.
Disruptions
Central Railways’ Mumbai Division suburban services faced significant disruptions on Sunday, as two signal failures threw schedules into disarray, affecting more than 50 trains. The already challenging situation was compounded by scheduled mega blocks between Matunga and Thane UP and DN slow lines from 11.05am to 3.35pm.
The first signal failure occurred around 2.45pm on the UP fast line between Kanjurmarg and Vikhroli, leading to delays of nearly half an hour for passengers on the main line towards CSMT. The issue was resolved by 5.15pm, but the backlog lingered.
The second signal failure struck later in the day at Koper station around 6.15pm. Sources revealed that a fire in the grass beside the track damaged a signal cable, rendering three signals near Koper station inoperative.
