New Delhi: The Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has approved a Performance-Linked Bonus (PLB) equivalent to 78 days’ wages for more than 11.72 lakh Railway employees, amounting to Rs 2,028.57 crore.
Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw announced the decision, which will provide a financial boost to various categories of railway staff, including loco pilots, track maintainers, station masters, guards, supervisors, technicians, helpers, pointsmen, ministerial staff as well as Group C staff.
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Thursday 03 Oct. 2024
The bonus, set to benefit various categories of non-gazetted Railway staff — including track maintainers, loco pilots, train managers, station masters, and other technical and ministerial employees — serves as an annual incentive to encourage continued improvement in railway performance. The maximum payout per employee will be Rs 17,951.
The PLB, traditionally disbursed ahead of the Durga Puja and Dussehra holidays, is a regular feature for Indian Railways staff and is expected to cover 11.72 lakh employees this year.
Ahead of the announcement, several Railway unions expressed dissatisfaction, launching a social media campaign on Thursday to demand bonuses based on the Seventh Pay Commission recommendations instead of the Sixth.
Unions such as the Indian Railway Employees Federation (IREF) and the Indian Railway Signal & Telecommunication Maintainers Union (IRSTMU) voiced concerns over the bonus calculation, arguing that it does not reflect the current pay scales.
