Loco pilots go on hunger strike
Loco pilots, under the banner of All India Loco Running Staff Association, observed a 24-hour hunger strike before the Ernakulam Junction railway station on Saturday. They alleged that the Railway was imposing heavy workload on them and denying them weekly rest. They said senior officials got weekly rest of 64 hours, while loco pilots got just 22 hours. They alleged that continuous work had implications on the safe running of trains. They also demanded cutting down of night shifts to two days per week and sought filling of vacancies. The delay in filling vacancies had added to workload of train crew, said P.N. Soman, zonal vice-president of the association.