Perfect Detailing And Responsibility Distribution – The Key Of Railway Recruitment
Indian Railway organizational structure is highly varied and mammoth so as to be able to manage the large system of Indian Railway, which extends from Kanyakumari in the south to the Kashmir and Himalayas in the north and from North East valley in the east to the plains of Gujarat in the west. Expansive as it is, the Indian Railway is also largest in terms of employees. The organizational structure, in which the Indian Railways has its functioning, is mostly in the format of the old era of the British rule, as was before independence. Human Resource Management of the vast expanse of Indian Railways is but done in an intricately divided format of Railway recruitment boards and union public service commission.
Organizational Structure:
Much of the recruitment profile in the Indian Railways is dependent on how the organization is divided. Indian Railway has been divided into 17 zones depending on the areas it caters to and each zone is headed by a General Manager, who is directly reporting to the Ministry of Railways or the Railway Board.
- Each zone is further divided into divisions, which is headed by the Divisional Railway Managers or the DRMs.
- Reporting to the DRMs are the officers for different sections in the divisions for the departments of Engineering, Electrical, Mechanical, Signal and Telecommunication, Personnel, Accounts, Commercial, Operating, and Safety. Each of these divisional officers is in charge of the operations of their individual departments and the management of the assets.
- Lower down the hierarchy are the Station Masters in the individual station level, who manage and control the train movements in their track territory.
By such a system of management, there is a dual control of operations at the zonal level and the Railway Board provides the functional and policy guidance.
Railway Recruitment:
Recruitment in Indian Railways is undertaken in four group levels namely the Group A and B, who are in the gazetted ranks and the Group C and D who are included in the non-gazetted ranks. Each of these groups has officer cadre employees which can again have technical and non technical groups.
- 1. Recruitment for Group A:
The highest ranking officers are in the Group A category whose recruitment is directly done by the UPSC by a written exam followed by the interview or group discussion. This recruitment is done by the Combined Engineering Services Examination and Civil Services Examination. Through the civil services exam, the services includes are:
- Indian Railway Traffic Service
- Indian Railway Accounts Service
- Indian Railway Personnel Service
- Railway Protection Force
The Combined Engineering Services Exam leads to the recruitment of officers into the followed services.
- Indian Railway Service of Engineers
- Indian Railway Stores Service
- Indian Railway Service of Mechanical Engineers
- Indian Railway Service of Electrical Engineers
- Railway service of Signal Engineers
Through the UPSC Special Class Railway Apprentice Examination also, the personnel in Indian Railway Service of Mechanical Engineers can be recruited.
All the officers of Group A are trained in the appropriate section among the six centralized training institutes in the country.
- 2. Recruitment for Group B:
The Group B officers are promoted from the Group C recruits.
- 3. Recruitment for Group C:
Recruitment of Group C officers is done through the Railway Recruitment Boards (RRBs) in the country, which are 19 in number and under the overall control of Railway Recruitment Control Board of the Ministry of Railways. These RRBs undertake the recruitment process of the personnel in the zones and the production houses and other Railway departments in the zonal levels. They are responsible for inviting applications in the technical and non technical cadre in the Group C.
- Non Technical: The various Non Technical categories include Clerks, Assistant Station Masters, Ticket Collectors, Trains Clerks, Commercial Apprentice, Traffic Apprentice, etc. These vacancies are advertised in the national newspapers and in the weekly Employment News papers. Most of the posts require the candidates to pass the written tests which are followed by interview. After the selection in these candidates, they are required to pass through a medical test. The age criteria for majority of these posts is within the limits of 18 to 27 years while the educational qualifications varies from post to post, which can range from matriculation pass to Graduation from a recognized University.
- Technical: The Technical posts in the Group C category are usually in the fields such as Civil, Mechanical, Electrical, Signal and Telecommunication, etc. The vacancies for these posts are also advertised in the National Dailies and Rojgar Samachar. The written rounds are designed according to the educational qualifications for the respective posts and usually there are no interview rounds. Some of the posts might require viva or psychological tests or skill tests, depending on the job profiles. After the selection of the candidates, they are referred to the respective zones and the successful candidates are required to pass the medical tests before being appointed. The age limit of these posts in Group C is between 18 to 27 years and they need to have degrees in respective branches in engineering from any recognised university in the country. The official advertisements have the other necessary qualifications and eligibility criteria.
At regular intervals, the different individual RRBs come out with the vacancies for such posts as and when required.
- Recruitment for Group D:
The Group D recruitment is done at the divisional level. This can also be carried out by the Headquarters of the Zonal Railway.
Zonal Recruitment Norms:
As per the organizational structure of the Indian Railway, the segregation into zones and divisions has distributed the overall burden of recruitment, although the regulatory guidelines and supervision is done by the Railway Board at the centre or the Ministry of Railways. Through such a process also, there is a clear cut demarcation of the duties of individual RRBs and the divisions, both in their operational functions and recruitments.
One more advantage that is very much imminent is that the vacancies in the particular zone or division are filled up at the same level, which is best known by the zone or the division. There is no need to pass through bureaucratic decisions and compliance but such an autonomous system, as far as the recruitment in the Group C and D categories are concerned.
Railway Zones: -
Railway Zone: Central Railway
Central Railway (Abbreviation): CR
Date of Establishment: November 05, 1951
Route KMs: 3905
Central Railway Zone Headquarters: Mumbai
Central Railway Zone Divisions: Mumbai, Bhusawal, Pune, Solapur, Nagpur
Railway Zone: East Central Railway
East Central Railway Zone (Abbreviation): ECR
Date of Establishment: October 01, 2002
Route KMs: 3628
East Central Railway Zone Headquarters: Hajipur
East Central Railway Divisions: Danapur, Dhanbad, Mughalsarai, Samastipur, Sonpur
Railway Zone: East Coast Railway
East Coast Railway Zone (Abbreviation): ECoR
Date of Establishment: April 01, 2003
Route KMs: 2572
East Coast Railway Zone Headquarters: Bhubaneswar
East Coast Railway Divisions: Khurda Road, Sambalpur, Visakhapatnam
Railway Zone: Eastern Railway
Eastern Railway Zone (Abbreviation): ER
Date of Establishment: April, 1952
Route KMs: 2414
Eastern Railway Zone Headquarters: Kolkata
Eastern Railway Divisions: Howrah, Sealdah, Asansol, Malda
Railway Zone: North Central Railway
North Central Railway Zone (Abbreviation): NCR
Date of Establishment: April 01, 2003
Route KMs: 3151
North Central Railway Zone Headquarters: Allahabad
North Central Railway Divisions: Allahabad, Agra, Jhansi
Railway Zone: North Eastern Railway
North Eastern Railway Zone (Abbreviation): NER
Date of Establishment: 1952
Route KMs: 3667
North Eastern Railway Zone Headquarters: Gorakhpur
North Eastern Railway Divisions: Izzatnagar, Lucknow, Varanasi
Railway Zone: North Western Railway
North Western Railway Zone (Abbreviation): NWR
Date of Establishment: October 01, 2002
Route KMs: 5459
North Western Railway Zone Headquarters: Jaipur
North Western Railway Divisions: Jaipur, Ajmer, Bikaner, Jodhpur
Railway Zone: Northeast Frontier Railway
Northeast Frontier Railway Zone (Abbreviation): NFR
Date of Establishment: January 15, 1958
Route KMs: 3907
Northeast Frontier Railway Zone Headquarters: Guwahati
Northeast Frontier Railway Divisions: Alipurduar, Katihar, Rangia, Lumding, Tinsukia
Railway Zone: Northern Railway
Northern Railway Zone (Abbreviation): NR
Date of Establishment: April 14, 1952
Route KMs: 6968
Northern Railway Zone Headquarters: Delhi
Northern Railway Divisions: Delhi, Ambala, Firozpur, Lucknow, Moradabad
Railway Zone: South Central Railway
South Central Railway Zone (Abbreviation): SCR
Date of Establishment: October 02, 1966
Route KMs: 5803
South Central Railway Zone Headquarters: Secunderabad
South Central Railway Divisions: Secunderabad, Hyderabad, Guntakal, Guntur,Nanded, Vijayawada
Railway Zone: South East Central Railway
South East Central Railway Zone (Abbreviation): SECR
Date of Establishment April 01, 2003
Route KMs: 2447
South East Central Railway Zone Headquarters: Bilaspur
South East Central Railway Divisions: Bilaspur, Raipur, Nagpur
Railway Zone: South Eastern Railway
South Eastern Railway Zone (Abbreviation): SER
Date of Establishment: 1955
Route KMs: 2631
South Eastern Railway Zone Headquarters: Kolkata
South Eastern Railway Divisions: Adra, Chakradharpur, Kharagpur, Ranchi
Railway Zone: South Western Railway
South Western Railway Zone (Abbreviation): SWR
Date of Establishment: April 01, 2003
Route KMs: 3177
South Western Railway Headquarters: Hubli
South Western Railway Divisions: Hubli, Bangalore, Mysore
Railway Zone: Southern Railway
Southern Railway Zone (Abbreviation): SR
Date of Establishment: April 14, 1951
Route KMs: 5098
Southern Railway Zone Headquarters: Chennai
Southern Railway Division: Chennai, Trichy, Madurai, Palakkad, Salem,Trivandrum (Thiruvananthapuram)
Railway Zone: West Central Railway
West Central Railway Zone (Abbreviation): WCR
Date of Establishment: April 01, 2003
Route KMs: 2965
West Central Railway Zone Headquarters: Jabalpur
West Central Railway Divisions: Jabalpur, Bhopal, Kota
Railway Zone: Western Railway
Western Railway Zone (Abbreviation): WR
Date of Establishment: November 05, 1951
Route KMs: 6182
Western Railway Zone Headquarters: Mumbai
Western Railway Divisions: Mumbai Central, Ratlam, Ahmedabad, Rajkot,Bhavnagar, Vadodara
Website: http://www.rrbahmedabad.gov.in
Railway Recruitment Board Ahmedabad
1st Floor, Meter Guage Building, Railway Station, Kalupur, Ahmedabad – 380 002, Gujarat
E-Mail: as-rrbadi@nic.in
Website: http://www.rrbajmer.org
Railway Recruitment Board Ajmer
Nehru Marg, Near Ambedkar Circle, Ajmer – 305001, Rajasthan
E-Mail: asecy@rrbadi.org
Railway Recruitment Board Allahabad
Website: http://www.rrbald.nic.in
Opposite to G.M./NCR Building, Near Subedarganj Railway Hospital, Subedarganj, Allahabad – 211 033, Uttar Pradesh
E-Mail: chrrbald@yahoo.co.in
Railway Recruitment Board Bangalore
Website: http://www.rrbbnc.gov.in
18, Millers Road, Bangalore – 560046, Karnataka
E-Mail: rrbbnc@gmail.com
Railway Recruitment Board Bilaspur
Website: http://www.rrbbilaspur.gov.in
General Manager/SECR’s Office Complex Bilaspur (C.G) Pin: 495 004, Chhattigarh
E-Mail: rrbbsp@gail.com
Railway Recruitment Board Bhopal
Website: http://www.rrbbpl.nic.in
East Railway Colony, [Near Bhopal Railway Station], Bhopal – 462010, Madhya Pradesh
E-mail- rrbbpl-mp@nic.in
Railway Recruitment Board Bhubaneswar
Website: http://www.rrbbbs.gov.in
D-79/80, Rail Vihar , B.D.A. Rental Colony, Chandrasekharpur, Bhubaneswar -751023, Orissa
E-Mail: support@rrbbbs.gov.in
Railway Recruitment Board Chandigarh
Website: http://www.rrbcdg.org
SCO 34, IInd Floor, Madhya Marg, Sector – 7-C, Chandigarh, Punjab
E-Mail: rrb_cdg@yahoo.co.in
Railway Recruitment Board Chennai
Website: http://www.rrbchennai.net
Address: 5, Dr. P.V. Cherian Crescent Road, Egmore, Chennai – 600 008, Tamil Nadu
E-Mail: rrbmas@sr.railnet.gov.in
Railway Recruitment Board Gorakhpur
Website: http://www.rrbgkp.gov.in
Address: Railway Station Road, Gorakhpur – 273012, Uttar Pradesh
E-Mail: rrbgkp@yahoo.co.in
Railway Recruitment Board Guwahati
Website: http://rrbguwahati.gov.in
Station Road, Guwahati, Assam
E-Mail: crrb-as@nic.in
Railway Recruitment Board Jammu & Srinagar
Website: http://www.rrbjammu.nic.in
Address: Railway Colony (West), Jammu-180012
E-Mail: rrbjammu@yahoo.co.in
Railway Recruitment Board Kolkata
Website: http://www.rrbkolkata.org
Metro Railway A.V.Complex, Chitpur, Opp. To R. G. Kar Medical College & Hospital, R. G. Kar Road, Kolkata-700 037, West Bengal
E-Mail: rrbcal@vsnl.net
Railway Recruitment Board Malda
Website: http://www.rrbmalda.gov.in
Kalibari Railway Colony, P.O Jhaljhalia, Malda – 732102, West Bengal
E-Mail: mdarrb@dataone.in
Railway Recruitment Board Mumbai
Website: http://www.rrbmumbai.gov.in
Railway Divisional office compound, Mumbai Central, (E), Mumbai – 400 202, Maharashtra
E-Mail: nks5955@yahoo.co.in
Railway Recruitment Board Patna
Website: http://www.rrbpatna.org
Mahendrughat, Patna – 800 004, Bihar
E-Mail: rrbpatna-bih@nic.in
Railway Recruitment Board Ranchi
Website: http://www.rrbranchi.org
Railway Offices Complex, Chutia, Ranchi-834027, Jharkhand
E-Mail: secretary@rrbranchi.org
Railway Recruitment Board Secunderabad
Website: http://www.rrbsec.org
South Lallaguda, Secunderabad– 500017, Andhra Pradesh
E-Mail: msrrbsc@hotmail.com
Railway Recruitment Board Thiruvananthapuram
Website: http://www.rrbthiruvananthapuram.net
Thampanoor, Thiruvananthapuram – 695 001, Kerala
E-Mail: contact@rrbthiruvananthapuram.net
Railway Recruitment Board, Muzaffarpur
Website: http://www.rrbmuzaffarpur.bih.nic.in
Lichi Bagan, Maripur, Muzaffarpur-842001, Bihar
E-Mail: rrbmfp-bih@nic.in
Railway Recruitment Board Siliguri
Website: http://www.rrbsiliguri.org
Subhashpally, Siliguri, District-Darjeeling-734001, West Bengal
E-Mail: info@rrbsiliguri.org
End Note:
With the recruitment process being done in such a manner, Railway recruitment is obviously being preferred these days by many students who are also able to prepare for the exams and interviews in a systematic manner for various levels of operation in this mammoth infrastructure.
