10% Reservations for EWS in Railway Recruitment

10% EWS Reservation in Railway Recruitment

The Ministry of Railways has recently implemented a new recruitment policy that includes 10% reservations for Economically Weaker Sections (EWS). This is the first major recruitment drive to offer such benefits to EWS candidates, providing them with greater opportunities for employment within the railway industry. By promoting diversity and inclusivity, the Ministry of Railways hopes to create a more equitable workforce that reflects the socio-economic diversity of the country.

First Recruitment with 10% EWS Reservation Post 103rd Amendment

Following the recent passage of the 103rd Constitutional Amendment by the Indian Parliament, which provides 10% reservations for Economically Weaker Sections (EWS), the company has announced its first major recruitment drive. This recruitment drive will be the first to take advantage of the new EWS reservations, which are intended to provide more opportunities for individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds to secure employment. The company is committed to promoting diversity and accessibility in its hiring practices and intends to continue to prioritize underrepresented groups in the future.

Recruitment drive will result in massive employment generation with 2,30,000 direct jobs

Recruitment shall be conducted in two-phases duly observing the laid down criteria of reservation in Government of India

Phase-I (starting February-March, 2019 and completed by April-May, 2020) will comprise of 1,31,428 posts

Phase II (starting May-June 2020 and completed by July-August, 2021) will comprise of 99,000 posts

About 34,000, 17,000 and 62,000 posts reserved for SC, ST and OBC candidates respectively. Further, as per 103rd Constitutional Amendment, 10% of these vacancies, i.e. around 23,000 shall be reserved for candidates from Economically Weaker Sections (EWS)

In line with the mega recruitment process for recruitment of 1,51,548 employees initiated 14 months ago, Indian Railways will initiate fresh recruitment of ~2,30,000 more employees under various cadres of Indian Railways, which will be recruited over the next two years in two phases.

In line with the vision of Hon’ble Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, Indian Railways is consistently expanding its workforce to match the manpower requirements of new projects and increase the overall efficiency of the entire railway network. These recruitment drives will fix long-standing issues of overtime work, delay in project implementation, low efficiency, and constraints on upgradation. With the increase in investment in Railways being threefold since 2014, recruitment needs have also increased, which will lead to job-led growth and expansion of Indian Railways.

Presently, Indian Railways has a sanctioned strength of 15,06,598 employees. Out of these, 12,23,622 personnel are on roll. The remaining 2,82,976 are vacant posts. Recruitment for 1,51,548 posts is going on, leaving 1,31,428 posts still vacant. Further, it may also be noted that approximately 53,000 and 46,000 railway employees shall retire in 2019-20 and 2020-21 respectively, causing an additional vacancy of approximately 99,000 employees. Thus, after accounting for the current recruitments in progress, there will be total net vacancies of 1,31,428 and approximately 99,000 i.e. approximately 2,30,000 employees in the railways over next two years.

These are proposed to be recruited over the next two years in two phases. The first phase of fresh recruitment of 1,31,328 posts shall be initiated in the month of February-March, 2019. As per reservation policy of the Government, around 19,715, 9,857 and 35,485 number of vacancies shall be reserved for SC, ST and OBC candidates respectively. Further, as per 103rd Constitutional Amendment recently passed by the Parliament, 10% of these vacancies i.e. around 13,100 shall be filled in from Economically Weaker Sections (EWS). This cycle shall be completed by April-May, 2020.

After the first phase of fresh recruitment of 1,31,328 personnel is completed, the second phase of recruitment of approximately 99,000 personnel against the vacancies arising out of retirements shall be initiated. As per the reservation policy of the Government, approximately 15,000, 7,500, 27,000 and 10,000 posts shall be reserved for SC, ST, OBC and EWS candidates respectively.

Recruitment shall be for various cadres and minimum eligibility criteria shall vary from certification from Industrial Training Institutes or Diploma/above in Engineering or Graduation in any discipline, depending on the post for which the candidate is applying.

These recruitment cycles will result in massive direct and indirect employment generation. Recruitment of 1,31,328 persons in first phase followed by recruitment of 99,000 persons shall create around 2,30,000 direct jobs. The resulting increase in efficiency and investment will boost the regional economies, while boost in connectivity through the Railways will integrate the economic potential of regions and give further rise to job opportunities for the youth of the nation.

Source: PIB

103rd Constitutional Amendment