Waltair Division Honours 72 Staff at Rail Seva Awards
Divisional Railway Manager Lalit Bohra said the Rail Seva Puraskar celebrations provide an opportunity to review the performance of railway units and recognise employees for meritorious service.
He was speaking at the 70th Railway Week Award – Rail Seva Puraskar function organised by the Waltair Division of East Coast Railway at the Rail Club in Visakhapatnam on Friday.
Bohra said Waltair Division recorded the highest incremental freight revenue growth in Indian Railways, adding Rs 1,500 crore.
He highlighted several initiatives, including the introduction of the AI-powered Rail Robocop “ASC ARJUN” at Visakhapatnam Railway Station for surveillance and passenger assistance. The system has helped identify habitual offenders using facial recognition technology.
Other initiatives include commercial advertising on WAP-7 locomotives as a non-fare revenue measure and a hygienic tea and coffee vending system on trains.
Bohra also announced that four trains currently operating as special services will be regularised. These include two Visakhapatnam–Tirupati specials to be converted into weekly services, the Visakhapatnam–SMVT Bengaluru Weekly Express, and the Visakhapatnam–Charlapalli Weekly Express.
The division also surpassed its freight loading target of 78.45 million tonnes, achieving it 24 days ahead of schedule. It is expected to cross 84 million tonnes this financial year.
During the event, 72 staff members received Merit Awards, and 14 shields were presented to departments. Earlier, the Waltair Division received the Overall Efficiency Shield and 14 departmental shields. In addition, 17 employees received the Vishisht Rail Seva Puraskar–2025 at a ceremony in Bhubaneswar.
Those present included Jyotsna Bohra, President of the East Coast Railway Women’s Welfare Organisation; E. Santharam, ADRM (Infrastructure); K. Rama Rao, ADRM (Operations); Senior Divisional Personnel Officer Jusuf Kabir Ansari; ECoRWWO Vice President Gayatri Santharam, along with other officers and staff. Cultural programmes were also held during the event.