AILRSA to join march against Indian railways privatisation

Our Bureau Bengaluru | THE HINDU BUSINESS LINE Published on September 26, 2019

‘Long march’ will start at from Chittaranjan Locomotive Works and end at Howrah

The All India Loco Running Staff Association (AILRSA) has opposed the privatisation of the Indian Railways.

The association’s Central Working Committee meeting, held in Bengaluru, has decided to observe a ‘Solidarity Day’ on November 28 to support the long march from Chittaranjan Locomotive Works (CLW) to Howrah from November 28 to December 13.

The decision to this effect was taken at the AILRSA Central Working Committee meeting in Bengaluru.

AILRSA has been representing the Assistant Loco Pilot, Shunting Loco Pilot, Loco Pilot Goods, Loco Pilot Passenger, and Loco Pilot Mail staff of Indian Railways.

Commenting on privatisation, L Mony, Central President of AILRSA, said Indian Railways continues to be the cheapest mode of transport for hundreds of lakhs of our people. It carries over two crore people every day from one place to another. It is estimated that the total distance covered by both passenger and freight trains in a day in India is, on an average, three million kilometres -- almost 10 times the distance between the earth and the moon!

Built by lakhs of workers in extreme conditions, including starvation and endemic diseases while negotiating difficult terrain across the country, Indian Railways remains the world’s largest railway system under a single management – the government of India.

MN Prasad, Secretary General of AILRSA, said the BJP-led government appears to be determined to change this. It has decided to dismantle and hand over this colossus of an establishment to private players, both domestic and foreign, and is going ahead in that direction, he said.

Published on September 26, 2019