Station Masters of CR and WR demand hike in minimum Grade Pa

Mumbai: Station masters in Mumbai division of Central Railway and Western Railway have sought Union Finance Ministry’s speedy clearance to the Railway Board’s proposal for increase in minimum grade pay. The station masters, united under the banner of All India Station Masters’ Associations (AISMA), made this demand in a press conference in Mumbai on Monday.

“We are getting salary, which is lower than those who are working under us. This is ridiculous! Railway Board took note of our demand and approved an increase in minimum grade pay from Rs 2,800 to Rs 4,200. However, the Finance Ministry has been sitting on it since the last four years,” Shashi Jaiswal, Secretary of AISMA, Mumbai said. He said that as per the safety advisers’ observations, the work pressure of station masters has gone up by 500 per cent. “However, our pay-scale and other benefits have never been upgraded,” Jaiswal said.

“If our valid demands were not met soon, all the station masters will be forced to stop working,” he said.

As per the official figures, there are almost 35,400 station masters working at 7,146 railway stations and 300 major yards in India, who supervise the safety and punctuality of train movements.