Taste of own medicine

My friend Vikas Arya has hit the nail right on the head when he says that the officer clan of the railways, has started getting a taste of its own medicine through the recent suspensions of faultless officers. His statement has opened up a new line of thought, hitherto unexplored.

It is indeed true that the officer clan of the railways never batted an eyelid in imposing indiscriminate suspensions and punishments on the front line staff, without caring a fig about whether the guy is really responsible or not for the act of high treason that the guy is being charged with. What has however emerged as a serious concern is that the bar has been moved upwards and officer class has also started getting a taste of the medicine that they regularly prescribed to the downtrodden. I find it ironic.

The fact remains that the railways with over fourteen hundred thousand employees has lost its HR focus totally and absolutely. The concern for the “aam railway man” has almost evaporated in the last few decades. It amazes me that in my over three decades of service, I have not been summoned to attend even one meeting that had the welfare of the staff at its core. Is it not sad that we discuss budgets, operations, materials and projects and even welfare of the super bosses, but never, repeat never the welfare of the staff.

Leave alone welfare, the system presided over by the railway bureaucrats leaves no stone unturned in exploiting the staff to the hilt. Classic instances of the same are some very glaring exploitation cases of irregularly utilized railway staff at residences of very senior railway officers who go even to the extent of physical assaults and extracting money from the hapless employees.

And I am amazed at the extent of charge sheets being issued, aghast at the trampling of self esteems and sad at the overall environment that promotes injustice and tends to deprive basic human dignity to those below by those above.

And the management continues to think that the problems plaguing railways lie elsewhere. How foolish and how sad!