May 22, 2007	Tuesday	Jamadi-ul-Awwal 05, 1428

LAHORE, May 21: The Pakistan Railways, perhaps the only railway service in the world that still uses the 18th century kerosene-lit semaphore signals, has been facing shortage of technical staff for its signals department for the last couple of years.

A source in the railways personnel wing told this reporter that graduates and diploma holders in electrical engineering join the department but leave primarily because of low wages, long duty hours, no chances of promotion and higher level of responsibility.

The sanctioned strength of assistant signals engineers (ASE) in BS-17 has been 17 in the railways with 11 posts are filled through direct recruitment and remaining six by promoting the railway signals staff.

In 2005, railways advertised 17 posts of ASE. Some 14 electrical engineers applied and all were selected. Nine joined the PR Academy at Walton for training in February last year but four of them expressed their inability to continue two months later.

“From the lot of ASEs directly recruited before 2005, only Engineer Arslan is still serving in Karachi division of the railways while his all badge-mates have left,” claimed the source.

The total strength of sub-engineer signals (SES) in BS-11 has been 200. At present, 130 are on roll and 70 posts are lying vacant.

In 2000, 30 posts of SESs were advertised. Of the 16 diploma holders selected there were only eight left at the time of passing out from PR Academy and only five are still working.

Twenty-three SESs were selected in 2001 against 58 posts. Seven of them are still working while 21 had successfully completed training.

Some 48 posts were advertised in 2004, some 43 diploma holders were selected, 35 passed out but five have left railways so far.

Some 220 signal maintainers (SMRs) in BS-8 are working in railways against the sanctioned strength of 315, showing a shortfall of 90. There were 11 people in the 2004 badge of SMRs. Two left during training while eight others have left so far.

Of the 904 BS-1 posts of Muawan, some 200 have been lying vacant.

A retired chief engineer (signals) of the PR said: “A three-member team of PR signals staff is responsible for keeping the signals system in order in the area of up to seven stations. They are supposed to remain on duty round the clock, with no additional incentives. But have always been a scapegoat in case of an accident.

“No accused was nominated in the FIR lodged with the Rohri railway police on July 13, 2005, about the collision of three trains at the Sarhad station. But Assistant Signals Engineer Haider Hasan and Signal Maintainer Maiwa Khan of the Sukkur Division were later arrested by the railways police on Nov 7 and illegally kept in inhuman conditions for five days in the Sukkur PR police station though they later proved innocent,” he said.

“The existing signalling systems of the Pakistan Railways neither meet the safety requirements of higher speeds, nor they are able to handle growing traffic density, and the possibility of their malfunctioning cannot be ruled out which may result in accidents.

“Had there been modern systems, tragedies like the Sarhad station on July 13, 2005, and the derailment of 10 coaches of Karakorum Express near Samasata junction on Feb 4 the following year could have been avoided,” he maintained.