Railway Guards call off lightning strike

The Railway Guards’ Union has ended the lightning strike which began on Wednesday (4) after a discussion with State Minister of Transport Lasantha Alagiyawanna yesterday (5) morning.

The railway guards went on sick leave after a group of Railway security personnel attacked a sub-guard who had smoked while working at the Maligawatte railway yard.

Around 80 trains were cancelled on Wednesday (4) and yesterday (5) morning.

Railway Department’s General Manager W.A.D.S. Gunasinghe said that the Railway Department had started an internal investigation regarding this incident and the Police had also conducted an investigation.

As the Railway service has been made an essential service by a special gazette issued on September 13, in order to maintain a continuous service without causing inconvenience to the public, all the guards were informed to report to duty yesterday (5) before noon. Those who had difficulties reporting to the duty stations were asked to report to the nearest railway station, General Manager Gunasinghe said.

Also, the General Manager emphasized that the support of all employees is expected to maintain a continuous service and disciplinary action would be taken against all officers who failed to do so.

After a preliminary investigation into the incident, steps have been taken to temporarily suspend the services of the security official involved in the incident, he said.

Meanwhile, the Guards’ Union said that they had decided to suspend the trade union action due to the success of the negotiations held with State Minister Alagiyawanna.

The railway guards who reported sick were reporting back to work and the Railway Department had made arrangements to normalize the train services by yesterday (5) evening.

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