The Railway Ministry has put on hold the appointments of top officers of Level-17 including chairman/member of Railway Board and 16 General Managers.
Top officials say that the reason behind deferring the appointment is uneven competition between officers entered through Civil Services Examination (CSE) and Indian Engineering Services (IES).
Jaya Verma Sinha, a 1988 batch CSE officer, who is the first woman chairperson of Railways board, is due to retire this month.
The ministry had advertised the posts on August 13, 2024 inviting candidature from eligible officers of the 1989 and 1990 batch for empanelment to Level 16 and 17 posts of Indian Railway Management Service (IRMS). A link was also sent to eligible officers to submit their applications to the notification.
But within 72 hours on August 16, 2024, the link was deactivated and a notice was issued holding up the appointments.
What could be the reasons?
According to sources, there is resentment among railway officers who entered service through Indian Engineering Services (IES). Their grievance was that only a few officers of their stream were eligible for the top posts while a majority who qualified were those who joined the railways after clearing the Civil Services Examination (CSE).
There are three sources of entry in Railways — the CSE, IES and Special Class Railway Apprentice (SCRA). Since officers entered through CSE get promotions fast, they are placed much higher than their batchmates who joined services through IES. Officers entered through SCRA are nowhere in the competition.
“The competition then is uneven as in 1989 and 1990 batches invited to apply for the posts, there are hardly any officers from the Indian Engineering Services (IES) who had reached Level 15. So even if they had entered the service along with the CSE officers, they are deprived of this opportunity. It is against the natural justice,” said a senior officer.
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