Railway staff protest board's 'smart' directive

In a blinkered effort to follow the railway board’s orders and promote smart card machines, the city’s railways, it would seem, are not just alienating commuters, but also their own staff.

The ticket-checking staff, which has been asked to counsel commuters and publicise smart cards, is now protesting the directive, saying it is not their job.

“Our trade unions have vehemently opposed the move to involve TCs to promote smart cards,” said a staff member.

Several commuters, too, were of the notion that the railways should do something about non-functioning smart card machines before aggressively promoting the same.

Railway officials, who  dismissed non-functional machines as “one-off” cases, said,  “The machines are regularly maintained and working well.” But Mihir Rege, a commuter, said, “When you have a smart card and the machine does not function, you feel helpless, since you don’t even have coupons.”