With its earnings hit hard due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Railways is falling back on austerity measures including freeze in post creation, rationalisation of manpower at workshops, no new furniture and vehicles, reducing stationery expenses and leveraging digital platforms for communication and ceremonial functions, to curb expenses.
Also read: How the Indian Railways is reinventing itself in the time of COVID-19
In a recent letter to the General Managers, the Financial Commissioner pointed out that the traffic earnings have already dropped by 58% at the end of May compared to the year-ago period.
“...Railways has been mandated by the government to meet all revenues expenses including pension from own receipts. The COVID-19 pandemic and the nationwide lockdown are however likely to adversely impact the budgeted earnings target of current year,” the letter said, while asking the zones to strictly follow spending limits already imposed on Ordinary Working Expenses, Depreciation Reserve Fund and Rashtriya Rail Sanraksha Kosh, as a measure of extreme caution.
“There is a need to explore new areas of expenditure control and enhancement of earning.”
Among other things, the zones have been tasked with immediate review of re-engaged staff and explore feasibility of curtailing the same to bare minimum, while freezing new post creation except those related to safety.
“Review of posts created in the last two years should be done and if recruitment has not been made against those posts, it may be reviewed for surrendering, rationalisation of manpower in workshops. Time and motion study of workshops and production units for review of allowed time and incentives,” the letter listed as some of the measures to trim staff costs.
The Financial Commissioner also recommended a review of the procurement process. “The inventory should be immediately taken into account and procurement should be deferred in such a manner that unused inventory is minimised.”
Additionally, all diesel locos over 31 years old should be grounded via sale or export.
The official has said all outsourced activities such as on-board housekeeping, linen management, station cleaning, elevator and escalator manning, station announcement should be ‘critically’ reviewed and curtailed and attempts should be made to get them done through corporate social responsibility (CSR) funds.
The letter has advocated use of solutions such as e-office and video conferencing to stop manual activities such as booking of staff for sending files. It has also instructed the zones to reduce the use of stationery articles, cartridges and other items by at least 50% and use of secure email for correspondences.
It said the annual inspections by the GMs are a “big affair” involving huge expenditure of resource and manpower and these should now “be a silent and low-key affair with the minimum number of staff required”.
“Review and closure of uneconomic branch lines to the extent possible...expenditure on vehicles to be reduced to minimum required...no new furniture, additional vehicle, computers, printers and other such T&P items, even on replacement account should be procured,” it said.
The Financial Commissioner has also said all inaugural and ceremonial functions should be moved to online as far as possible. “All imprest other than safety and COVID-related activities should be reduced by 33-50% and underutilised imprests should be surrendered,” it said.
