Rajya Sabha Q&A : Details of officers opting VRS in railways

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
MINISTRY OF RAILWAYS
RAJYA SABHA
UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.1259
ANSWERED ON 16.12.2022

OFFICERS OPTING VRS IN RAILWAYS

1259 SHRI MOHAMMED NADIMUL HAQUE:

Will the Minister of RAILWAYS be pleased to state:

(a) the number of officers who have taken voluntary retirement from Railways in the past three years, year-wise;

(b) whether it is a fact that there has been an increase in the number of officers opting for Voluntary Retirement Scheme (VRS), if so, the reasons therefor;

(c) whether Railways have laid out mechanisms to upskill officers during their tenure to meet the requirements of changing times; and

(d) if so, the details thereof, if not, the reasons therefor?

ANSWER

MINISTER OF RAILWAYS, COMMUNICATIONS AND ELECTRONICS & INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY (SHRI ASHWINI VAISHNAW)

(a) The number of Group ‘A’ officers who have taken voluntary retirement from Railway Services during the years 2020, 2021 and 2022 are 82, 80 and 98, respectively.

(b) There has been variation in the number of officers opting for voluntary retirement from Railway services year to year. The officers opted for voluntary retirement citing personal grounds.

(c) and (d) Yes, Sir. Indian Railway officers undergo a variety of training programmes right from entering into the service and also at various stages of their career. These programmes encompass inputs on their domain of working, future leadership, strategic thinking, project management, Big Data management/decision making, Artificial Intelligence and Data Analysis, etc. The officials are also exposed to various workshops, seminars/conferences related to the transportation sector.

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