Reporter's Diary: Railway staff not on track with society’s foreign tour scheme

In a first in railway history, the society, for which contribution is deducted from employee’s salary, has offered to fund foreign trips. If the pamphlet circulated by RECCS were something to go by, employees and their families can spend six nights and seven days in Singapore and Star Cruise for Rs 80,810 per person. Sent in four batches from the second week of November, the society offers to recover the tour loan from employees at a rate of Rs 1,635 per month. Another package comprising six nights and seven days in Singapore and Malaysia (Rs 76,000 per head) would require Rs 1,535 monthly remittance by employees. 

Though the lucrative offer may find some takers among Class IV employees who otherwise cannot afford such trips, the offer has not  impressed most employees. “With this tour loan EMI plus existing education or marriage loans, our monthly contribution will be a few thousands. After paying to the society, what will we take home?” a clerk added sarcastically. 

Grapevine has it that the offer is also an indirect ‘bribe’ offered by existing chair of the society in whose lexicon election is an alien word. — K Karthikeyan, Chennai