Varanasi. There is news of relief for the loco pilots of North Eastern Railway. Making a major change in the torch cell allowance, the Railway Administration has now decided to give Rs 320 per month to the concerned employees. This arrangement will be applicable to loco pilots of Banaras, Izzatnagar and Lucknow railway divisions.
Earlier, different allowance was given according to the post.
Under the old system, assistant loco pilot got Rs 60, passenger train loco pilot got Rs 90 and mail/express train loco pilot got a maximum of Rs 120 per month as torch cell allowance. Railway employees said that despite the need and utility of torches during duty being almost the same, such a difference in allowance is not justified. For this reason, this issue was being raised by the employee organization for a long time.
Union continuously raised demands
NE Railway Men's Congress put forward the issue of equality in torch cell allowance before the Railway Administration. This demand was also kept prominently in the PNM meeting held by the organization with General Manager of North Eastern Railway, Uday Bodvarkar. The employees' organization argued that employees using torches for work of similar nature should not be paid at different rates. After continuous talks, the railway administration took a positive decision on this demand.
Now you will get Rs 320 every month
Under the new system, the concerned loco pilots will now get torch sale allowance of Rs 320 per month. This will significantly reduce the difference between old and new payments and will provide additional financial relief to the employees. The employee organization has described this decision of the Railway Administration as a major success of its demand.