People's Democracy

2400 Railway Workers Declared Surplus In Kolkata

AS the Railways Ministry of the BJP-run union government went ahead with its decision to bifurcate the Eastern Railways division on October 1, 2400 workers-employees of the headquarters in Kolkata were declared surplus, and asked to shift to Hajipur in Bihar with immediate effect "should they so desire."

The livelihood of the workers-employees has been put on the line. The assurance about their not losing their jobs has already begun to assume the appearance of a big lie in view of the menacing tone of a sentence in the transfer order about those unwilling to go to be shifted and made a part of the "staff bank" and "paid their dues while they sit idle."

The Eastern Railwaymen’s Union has lodged a strong protest with the Railway authorities against the decision to bifurcate the Eastern Railways and to shift 2400 workers-employees from Kolkata to Hajipur under the East-Central division.

As the bifurcation gets implemented over the fury of protest organised and led from the front by the CPI (M) and the Bengal Left Front, the railways have also decided to virtually abolish 3400 posts of various categories since these posts apparently find no place in the new scheme of things of the Railways.

All the major railway station of Bengal and the headquarters of the Eastern railways at the Fairlie Place in Kolkata saw daylong demonstrations by the Left Front. As per decision of the Left Front, there was no Rail roko organised. State secretary of the CPI (M) and Left Front leader, Anil Biswas assured the media at the Muzaffar Ahmad Bhavan in the afternoon of October 1 that the movement against the union government’s decision to bifurcate the Railways would continue unabated in the days to come.