Senior officers to replace station masters as head
If the Railway Board has its way, station masters will soon be replaced with station directors. Station directors will be J-grade officials. Currently, station masters are expected to report to J-grade officials.
According to sources, the idea was proposed by the Union railway ministry Suresh Prabhu as an effective way to address the passenger issues at the grass root level by placing a high-grade officer at the station for direct public interface. Mr Prabhu had first mentioned the plan during his budget speech in February this year but it took a while for the implementation of the same. “This move is actually massive in terms of what it will mean for the commuter. Until now, the station master who is a lower grade officer did not have a lot of power over other departments such as ticketing; now the station director can take a call and open a temporary counter or call for a facilitator at the ATVM machine,” said an official on condition of anonymity.
The big picture, said officials was to make this change before major railway stations in all metros saw commercial exploitation and development. “For example, at Seawoods station where most of the station space will be commercially exploited, we will need a person with more powers and of a higher grade to deal with commuter problems. This is the way forward for commuters,” the railway official added.
The decision on which stations from Mumbai are to be included will be communicated by the end of the week.