The Southern Railway, Thiruvananthapuram division, has withdrawn the controversial circular it issued for loco pilots restricting the use of homoeopathic medicine, soft drinks including tender coconut water, some kinds of plantain fruits, cough syrup, mouthwash, etc, ahead of signing on for the duty. The circular was withdrawn against the backdrop of the protest raised by the loco pilots.
Railways issued the extraordinary circular after the number of local pilots testing positive for alcohol ahead of duty went up. However, subsequent blood tests at the chemical examiner’s laboratory revealed that alcohol content in almost all blood samples was nearly zero. When asked, the loco pilots claimed that they had consumed products mentioned in the circular ahead of the duty, said railway sources.
Following this, Railways issued the circular inviting the wrath of running staff in the railway. Officials said the circular was issued as Railways could not afford to halt trains for about two hours until the staff was medically certified by a doctor, said the sources. On the other hand, the loco pilots had argued that the circular was arbitrary and infringed upon their personal freedom.
