22 March,2021 05:12 AM IST | Mumbai | Rajendra B. Aklekar
WR staff cleans and sanitises a local train at the Mumbai Central car shed. File pic
The Western Railway (WR) has taken the lead again and implemented staggered office timings for its staff following the 50 per cent attendance directive by the state government. The WR had also implemented the system last year in September.
As per a circular released on Saturday, half the attending staff of each section of the WR will attend office from 9.15 am to 4 pm and the remaining half will attend work from 11 am to 5.45 pm. The time slots have been put in place to avoid crowding in trains.
Officers and staff will need to follow the Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) at the workplace, which includes the compulsory wearing of the mask by all officers and employees, temperature checks at the entrance of offices, sanitising hands and maintaining hygiene at the workplace with nodal officers doing regular surprise checks.
The circular stated that meetings, as far as possible, may be continued via video conferencing; personal meetings with visitors, unless absolutely necessary, are to be avoided. "Four thermal scanners have been installed at the four entries of both HQ buildings and industrial-type hand sanitiser machines have also been provided," it added.
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The Mumbai division of WR had also set up satellite headquarter offices in Virar, Santacruz and Bandra in September 2020 to avoid crowding in offices. Ever since the Maharashtra government embarked on its âMission Begin Again', the need for staggered office timings was discussed and debated by both the Railways, the state government and the civic body. However, there has been no concrete plan of action on implementation, for fear of reaction from the public, as well as companies. Officials said that this is the railways' contribution to reducing the burden on Mumbai's local trains. Last time, the effort was moderately successful. Officials said this needs to be taken up seriously by more government and private offices as a permanent feature.
