BMRCL withdraws notification for 50 metro driver posts

Bengaluru: Banglore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL), bowing to protests from pro-Kannada organisations, has announced that it will withdraw the notification issued for filling 50 metro driver posts on contract basis.

BMRCL has taken this action in the wake of strong objections from pro-Kannada organizations, including the Kannada Development Authority, regarding the condition of having driving training despite having the appropriate educational qualifications for the post of driver.

Meanwhile, “Applications have been invited for the post of driver (loco pilot) regarding the traffic on the Yellow Line. We have to follow the government’s policies and rules. We will work to rectify this. Our people are also getting trained and working elsewhere. Currently, the posts are being filled on contract basis. We will look into this if necessary,” BMRCL MD Maheshwara Rao had earlier assured.

The pro-Kannada organisations have alleged that local candidates were ignored in the driver recruitment process and non-Kannada speakers were given priority. The Metro Employees Union has also filed a formal complaint with BMRCL Managing Director Maheshwara Rao, alleging that the corporation’s recruitment policies are detrimental to the interests of Kannada-speaking applicants.

Meanwhile, Kannada activists protested in front of the BMRCL office on Monday. Police had taken tight security measures to prevent the protesters from entering the office. Karnataka youth should be given priority in the recruitment of driver posts. This is a peaceful protest. They submitted a petition to the BMRCL MD, warning that they will enter all metros if Kannadigas are not given a chance.

BMRCL had issued a notification for the recruitment of 50 driver posts. In this, Kannadigas were excluded from the eligibility criteria, which limited applications to candidates working as train drivers on contract basis in the Hyderabad and Chennai metro systems.

Earlier, they were recruited and trained. They would later become skilled drivers. This time, BMRCL has abandoned that system. It had said that those who have a diploma in engineering trade and three years of experience as a driver in any metro are eligible to apply. However, the requirement of experience was the only obstacle for Kannadigas to apply.

Currently, recruitment is being done on contract basis for 5 years, with the possibility of extension based on work commitment, the notification states. Three years of experience means that they must have driven metros in other states including Chennai, Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad. Because there is no metro system in the state except Bangalore, say employees who are active in pro-Kannada activities in BMRCL.

Letter from Kannada Development Authority to BMRCL MD

Kannada Development Authority Chairman Dr. Purushottam Bilimale had written a letter to the BMRCL Managing Director, condemning the notification issued in a manner that would benefit non-Kannada speakers for the post of Metro drivers. He had requested that our Metro organization immediately stop the process of recruiting non-Kannada speakers.

The fact that a recruitment notification has been issued to facilitate employment opportunities for non-Kannada speakers in Namma Metro organization is a matter of pain for Kannadigas. The organization has given these posts as temporary posts only, which has further increased the pain of the Samajyaishi Kannadigas. Such an invitation by a Karnataka organization to non-Kannadigas not only takes away the self-confidence of Kannadigas who are suffering from the problem of unemployment, but it is a complete violation of constitutional aspirations.

Keeping Kannadigas away from the recruitment process on the pretext of technical posts is unacceptable in any way. Similarly, it is mentioned in the letter that it is also the primary responsibility of Namma Metro organization to teach Kannada to non-Kannada appointees on priority. The work of teaching Kannada to non-Kannada appointees in previous recruitment notifications should be taken up. They had demanded that non-Kannada appointees who do not learn Kannada should be released from service and that only Kannadigas should be appointed to technical and

non-technical posts.