Ujjain : All India Station Masters Association (AISMA) called a nationwide fast on Saturday for the acceptance of their demands. Along with Ujjain station master, others observed a fast for the acceptance of their pending demands. In this series Pingleshwar station master Shahid Sheikh took a day long roza.
Station masters gathered at city’s railway station under the guidance of Ratlam mandal secretary Abhilash Nagar and submitted memorandum, comprising several demands, to city’s station manager Mukesh Jain addressed to divisional railway manager, Ratlam.
AISMA members raised the demands to increase grade pay 5400 (level-9), to end the practise of duty roster in which some station masters have to perform 12 hours duty, 15 per cent posts of station masters should be made gazetted, to appoint additional station master at busy stations, scrap the new pension scheme and restore the old pension scheme.
Nagar pointed out that station masters perform critical duties of handling the railway traffic efficiently and ensure the smooth passage of trains. They perform their duties with utmost sincerity and dedication even at the remotest railway stations of the country without any special benefits. Since long time they have been highlighting their genuine demands but government is unwilling to accept them. This peaceful nationwide protest will definitely attract the attention of government, he added.