Railway trade unions oppose Debroy panel report on reforms

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“There are undeveloped areas where railway can develop infrastructure for profit on large scale,” added Bhatnagar.

Y G Joshi , president of the National Railway Mazdoor Union (NRMU), said, “There is already an immediate need for approximately 2 lakh staff in the Railways. The population has grown, the number of trains has increased , so manpower should balance it. The government should be looking at these aspects. Instead, the committee report suggested introduction of private players in operating goods trains, mail and suburban trains.”

They asked who would ensure coordination if infrastructure, operations and maintenance in railways are dealt with by different private companies

“Season tickets are cheaper than any other existing fare. If private companies come into this, the cost will increase for passengers. We have already seen the fare hike of Metro Rail that’s handled by a private company,” said Divakar Deo, general secretary of the Rail Kamgar Sena (RKS).