2.5 lakh Railways Jobs Lying Vacant: Govt Data

Over 2.5 lakh positions are lying vacant in the Indian Railways, primarily in the 'Group C' category of jobs, as per the government data revealed by the Centre in the Parliament on August 7.

In response to a query from BJP leader Sushil Kumar Modi, Union Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said that there are a total of 2,48,895 vacancies in Group C posts across all zones of the Railways.

Among the different zones, the northern zone has the highest number of vacant positions at 32,468, followed by the eastern zone with 29,869 vacancies, the western zone with 25,597 vacancies, and the central zone with 25,281 vacancies.

Vaishnaw stated that a total of 2,070 posts in Group 'A' and 'B' positions are yet to be filled. This takes the overall number of vacancies in the Railways to 2,50,965.

As of June 30, 2023, the minister reported that 1,28,349 candidates have been selected for Group C posts (excluding Level-1) based on notifications. Additionally, a total of 1,47,280 candidates have been chosen for Level-1 posts as of the same date.

According to an RTI query in June, more than 2.74 lakh posts in the Railways are lying vacant, with over 1.7 lakh of them in the safety category alone.

In its reply to the questions filed by Chandra Shekhar Gaur, a Madhya Pradesh-based Right to Information (RTI) Act activist, the Railways said 2,74,580 posts are vacant in Group C category, including Level 1 or entry-level staff, PTI reported.

"The total number of non-gazetted posts vacant i.e. Group-C (including Level-1) in Indian Railways, as available in this office, as on 01.06.2023 (provisional) is: 2,74,580," the ministry said.

On the safety category, it said there are more than 9.82 lakh posts of which over 8.04 lakh are filled.

"Total number of sanctioned, on roll and vacant posts in safety category of Group-C (including Level-1) in Indian Railways, as available in this office, as on 01.06.2023 (provisional) are: 9,82,037, 8,04,113 & 1,77,924 respectively," the response said.