Railway Ministry to resume direct recruitment for train controllers after seven-year gap

Ministry of Railways has announced that 60 per cent of vacancies in the train control department will be filled through direct recruitment by the Railway Recruitment Board (RRB), marking the return of fresh intake into the department after a gap of seven years.

According to reforms notified on June 25, the vacancies will now be open to graduate-level candidates, with the remaining 40 per cent to be filled through Limited Departmental Competitive Examinations (LDCE) or merit-based promotions from among eligible employees.

“How this examination will be conducted and what it will be called are some of the issues yet to be decided by the competent authority,” said Dilip Kumar, Executive Director, Information and Publicity, Railway Board.

Until 2017, the control department used to receive direct recruits via the Railway Traffic Apprentice Exams held by the RRB. However, the system was scrapped that year, leaving the posts to be filled solely by internal promotions from feeder cadres like guards, station masters, and train clerks.

“However, the examination was discontinued in 2017 after which direct recruitment in the control department was stopped and all posts used to be filled through the feeder cadre, such as guards, station masters and train clerks,” a railway official told PTI.

He added that a lack of financial incentives made the department unattractive to skilled employees, leading to it being considered a “dumping ground” for medically de-categorised staff.

“This is the major reason for the lack of talented workforce in the control department, which is believed to be the brain or nerve centre of the Indian Railways. However, with the new reforms, good candidates will now be posted here directly and it will improve the train operations,” a train controller said.

As per the circular, Grade Pay Level 2 employees, such as track maintainers, up to Level 5, can apply to become train controllers at Level 6.

Regarding Level 7 posts, 50 per cent will be filled through promotion from Level 6 based on seniority-cum-suitability, while the other half will come from LDCE or departmental selection among station masters, section controllers (Level 6), and train managers (Levels 5 or 6).

“All Grave Pay Level 8 vacancies in the control department will be filled through promotion from Level 7 on the seniority-cum-suitablity basis,” the official added.

The circular further mentions that both direct recruitment and departmental selection will include aptitude and psychometric assessments as per RDSO standards. All selected candidates will also undergo a year-long training programme to build the necessary skillsets for the role.