From foot massager to crockery, the Eastern Railways has upgraded the facilities for loco and assistant loco pilots in retiring rooms. Also, crew lobbies are air-conditioned, with biometric check-in, RO water filter and cooler, cubicles for uninterrupted rest, food counters and separate retiring rooms for women staff.
Speaking to News18, Kaushik Mitra, Chief Public Relations Officer (CPRO), Eastern Railways, said, “The comfort of our loco and assistant loco pilots is of utmost importance to us. These arrangements have been made so that they can relax amid their hectic schedule.”
Currently, there are 26 crew lobbies across Eastern Railways, most of which have both crew booking and crew waiting facilities.
Apart from resting cubicles, meditation and yoga room, along with massage chairs, have been provided. Besides, educative videos and simulating modules are available at crew booking lobbies and in the complex to upgrade their knowledge.
The facilities are available at all major stations such as Howrah, Bandel, Bardhaman, Azimganj, Rampurhat, etc. in Howrah Division; Sealdah, Kolkata, Dum Dum Junction, Naihati, Ranaghat, etc. in Sealdah Division; Asansol, Jasidih, Madhupur, Dumka, etc. in Asansol Division; Malda Town, Bhagalpur, Jamalpur, Sahibganj in Malda Division.
THE SEALDAH EXAMPLE
A case in point is the crew booking lobby and running room at Sealdah, which is well-maintained with an aesthetic view. A separate women’s room with an attached toilet is available where a dining set has been provided for separate use for women crew and train manager. Other amenities include centralised air-conditioning meditation room with ‘Om’ chanting, kitchen with arrangements for vegetarian and non-vegetarian meal, AC facility and independent flexible reading light, etc.
The cost of the meal is borne 90% by railways and 10% by the employees. The crew booking lobby and retiring room at Sealdah has 30 beds in guard retiring room and 48 in retiring room for motorman, loco pilots, assistant loco pilots, seminar room, south lobby, locker room, north lobby, reading room, meditation room, dining hall and resting cubicles.
In the crew lobby, the motorman, loco pilots and assistant loco pilots have been provided with caution order and timetable of the route where he/she will perform duty.
The motorman, loco pilots and assistant loco pilots are among the highly paid employees of Eastern Railway in comparison to staff of other departments with the same grade pay and hierarchy. In addition, subsidised meals are provided through catering units.
Sources say that the idea behind providing utmost comfort is to avert major accidents and keep travellers safe.
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