Though marathon talks over two days between the Railway Board and the All India Railwaymen’s Federation remained inconclusive, efforts for a negotiated settlement to avert a showdown are on.
Member Staff A.K. Mittal held discussions with federation leaders while Railway Board Chairman Arunendra Kumar was said to be actively involved in ensuring that negotiations do not derail and yielded a result to the contentment of the employees.
All India Railwaymen’s Federation president Shiva Gopal Mishra however said talks were not satisfactory enough to make them call of the proposed indefinite strike. Sources said Mr. Mittal would present a report on the discussion to Mr. Kumar and then get back to the federation leaders on January 25. The AIRF obtained approval of its members for an indefinite strike through a ballot conducted in December. The outcome is crucial for the National Federation of Indian Railwaymen, which also participated in the negotiations, as it is yet to take a decision on it.
