Indian Railway Service of Mechanical Engineers
Encyclopedia
The Indian Railway Service of Mechanical Engineering (IRSME) is a cadre of the Government of India
. The officers of this service are responsible for managing the Mechanical Engineering
Organisation of the Indian Railways
Both of these selection exams are conducted by the Union Public Service Commission
(UPSC) of India. The UPSC is responsible for recruiting middle and top-level bureaucrats for the Government of India
This organisation was central to all rolling stock
operations when the only modes of traction were Steam Locomotives and Diesel Electric Locomotives. With the use of electric traction on the trunk routes, the responsibility of traction operations has been shared with the Electrical Department.
All the coaches and wagons are maintained by the Mechanical Department. The air-conditioning part of the coaches on the system was maintained by the Electrical Department. A Railway Board order to bring the entire rolling stock under unified maintenance of the Mechanical Department in 2003 was held in abeyance under pressure from Electrical Department Unions.
This awkward (and sometimes arbitrary) split of responsibilities is a persistent source of organisational stress.
From a general public's point of view the most exciting tasks are related to accident relief and traffic restoration. IRSME is responsible for designing, acquiring / building and maintenance of the accident relief infrastructure and organisation. In times of emergency, the appropriate officer is responsible for mobilising the Accident Relief Medical Equipment (ARME) and Accident Relief Trains (ART). Accidents are times of great stress and anxiety. Inquiries and investigation into the cause can carry on for months after a major accident.
)
workshop has 12000 workers and is spread over 150 acre (0.607029 km²) with 11 km of roads inside the premises). It is only the organisational structure
that prevents them from being called Production Units.
). Member (Mechanical) is better known by the acronym MM.
In each of the zones the organisation is headed by a Chief Mechanical Engineer. The CME reports to the General Manager of the Railway. The office of the Member (Mechanical) of the Railway Board guides the CME on technical matters and policy.
At the divisional level the Sr Divisional Mechanical Engineers head the organisation. The Sr DME reports to the Divisional Railway Manager of the Division. Technical supervision is provided by the zonal Chief Mechanical Engineer.
at entry level ADME (assistant divisional engineer ) commands 500-15000 staff and 100- 250 trains;
Workshops are headed by Chief Works Managers. Since workshops are managed by the zonal Railways, the CWMs report to the CME.
Production Units, the manufacturing plants of the Indian Railways, are managed directly by the ministry. The General Managers of the PUs report to the Railway Board. The Production Units are
Centralised Training Institutes of the Indian Railways
Indian Railway Organisational Structure
Indian Engineering Service
Government of India
The Government of India, officially known as the Union Government, and also known as the Central Government, was established by the Constitution of India, and is the governing authority of the union of 28 states and seven union territories, collectively called the Republic of India...
. The officers of this service are responsible for managing the Mechanical Engineering
Mechanical engineering
Mechanical engineering is a discipline of engineering that applies the principles of physics and materials science for analysis, design, manufacturing, and maintenance of mechanical systems. It is the branch of engineering that involves the production and usage of heat and mechanical power for the...
Organisation of the Indian Railways
Indian Railways
Indian Railways , abbreviated as IR , is a departmental undertaking of Government of India, which owns and operates most of India's rail transport. It is overseen by the Ministry of Railways of the Government of India....
Recruitment
The recruitment to the cadre is done through two sources- The Indian Engineering Services exam
- The Special Class Railway ApprenticeSpecial Class Railway ApprenticeSpecial Class Railway Apprentices' refers to a handful of candidates that are selected by the Union Public Service Commission India, after a rigorous selection process, to the undergraduate program in Mechanical Engineering at the Indian Railways Institute of Mechanical and Electrical Engineering...
exam
Both of these selection exams are conducted by the Union Public Service Commission
Union Public Service Commission
The Union Public Service Commission is the central agency authorized to conduct the Civil Services Examination for entry-level appointments to the various Civil Services of India. The agency's charter is granted by the Constitution of India...
(UPSC) of India. The UPSC is responsible for recruiting middle and top-level bureaucrats for the Government of India
Role and Function
The main areas of responsibility of IRSME officers are- Train operations
- Motive Power availability
- Crew Management
- Rolling Stock Management
- Traffic restoration in case of accidents
- Production Units - Locomotives, Coaches, Wheel sets, etc
- Repair and Manufacturing workshops
This organisation was central to all rolling stock
Rolling stock
Rolling stock comprises all the vehicles that move on a railway. It usually includes both powered and unpowered vehicles, for example locomotives, railroad cars, coaches and wagons...
operations when the only modes of traction were Steam Locomotives and Diesel Electric Locomotives. With the use of electric traction on the trunk routes, the responsibility of traction operations has been shared with the Electrical Department.
All the coaches and wagons are maintained by the Mechanical Department. The air-conditioning part of the coaches on the system was maintained by the Electrical Department. A Railway Board order to bring the entire rolling stock under unified maintenance of the Mechanical Department in 2003 was held in abeyance under pressure from Electrical Department Unions.
This awkward (and sometimes arbitrary) split of responsibilities is a persistent source of organisational stress.
Train Operations
The responsibilities and assignments of train operations are loosely referred to as Open Line. A great deal of emphasis is placed on open line experience. Indeed, there are few cases of people who have succeeded in the organisation without a significant tenures on the Open Line.From a general public's point of view the most exciting tasks are related to accident relief and traffic restoration. IRSME is responsible for designing, acquiring / building and maintenance of the accident relief infrastructure and organisation. In times of emergency, the appropriate officer is responsible for mobilising the Accident Relief Medical Equipment (ARME) and Accident Relief Trains (ART). Accidents are times of great stress and anxiety. Inquiries and investigation into the cause can carry on for months after a major accident.
Production Units
The Indian Railways does a great deal of manufacturing and would rival any other engineering house in India. The overall manufacturing is split between the Production Units (managed independently) and the zonal workshops (managed by the zonal RailwaysIndian Railway organisational structure
The Indian Railways is organised broadly by functional groups of Indian Railway Service. This is traditionally how the co-operation is organised. The Indian Railways perhaps has been less adventurous in changing the structure; it has largely kept up what it got as a legacy since the British...
)
Repair and Manufacturing
The zonal railways have workshops that manufacture and repair equipment. These workshops can be very large (e.g. KharagpurKharagpur
Kharagpur is an industrial city in India. It is located in the Midnapore West district of the state of West Bengal.Kharagpur was chosen as the location of the first campus of the prestigious Indian Institutes of Technology . The IITs are the premier technical education institutes in India and...
workshop has 12000 workers and is spread over 150 acre (0.607029 km²) with 11 km of roads inside the premises). It is only the organisational structure
Indian Railway organisational structure
The Indian Railways is organised broadly by functional groups of Indian Railway Service. This is traditionally how the co-operation is organised. The Indian Railways perhaps has been less adventurous in changing the structure; it has largely kept up what it got as a legacy since the British...
that prevents them from being called Production Units.
Organisation
The IRSME is headed by a Member (Mechanical) in the Railway Board (Ministry of RailwaysMinistry of Railways (India)
The Ministry of Railways in India is in charge of the Indian Railways, an organisation that operates as a monopoly in rail transport in India. Dinesh Trivedi is the current minister responsible for railways....
). Member (Mechanical) is better known by the acronym MM.
In each of the zones the organisation is headed by a Chief Mechanical Engineer. The CME reports to the General Manager of the Railway. The office of the Member (Mechanical) of the Railway Board guides the CME on technical matters and policy.
At the divisional level the Sr Divisional Mechanical Engineers head the organisation. The Sr DME reports to the Divisional Railway Manager of the Division. Technical supervision is provided by the zonal Chief Mechanical Engineer.
at entry level ADME (assistant divisional engineer ) commands 500-15000 staff and 100- 250 trains;
Workshops are headed by Chief Works Managers. Since workshops are managed by the zonal Railways, the CWMs report to the CME.
Production Units, the manufacturing plants of the Indian Railways, are managed directly by the ministry. The General Managers of the PUs report to the Railway Board. The Production Units are
- Diesel Locomotive WorksDiesel Locomotive WorksThe Diesel Locomotive Works in Varanasi, India, is a production unit owned by Indian Railways, for which it manufactures diesel-electric locomotives and spare parts.-Company:...
, VaranasiVaranasi-Etymology:The name Varanasi has its origin possibly from the names of the two rivers Varuna and Assi, for the old city lies in the north shores of the Ganga bounded by its two tributaries, the Varuna and the Asi, with the Ganges being to its south... - Chittaranjan Locomotive Works, ChittaranjanChittaranjanChittaranjan is a census town in Asansol subdivision of Burdwan District in the state of West Bengal, India. This is famous for Chittaranjan Locomotive Works, a Indian Government railway factory.-Geography:...
- Diesel-Loco Modernisation WorksDiesel-Loco Modernisation WorksDiesel-Loco Modernisation Works, formerly Diesel Component works, is located in Patiala in the Indian state of Punjab. Diesel-Loco Modernisation Works was setup in the year 1981 to extend the service life of Diesel Locomotives of the Indian Railways and significantly raise the level of their...
, Patiala - Integral Coach FactoryIntegral Coach FactoryStarted in 1952, the Integral Coach Factory is located in Chennai, India. Its primary products are rail coaches. Most of the coaches manufactured are supplied to the Indian Railways, but it has also manufactured coaches for railway companies in other countries, including Thailand, Burma, Taiwan,...
, ChennaiChennaiChennai , formerly known as Madras or Madarasapatinam , is the capital city of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, located on the Coromandel Coast off the Bay of Bengal. Chennai is the fourth most populous metropolitan area and the sixth most populous city in India... - Rail Coach FactoryRail Coach FactoryEstablished in 1986, the Rail Coach Factory was the second coach manufacturing unit of Indian Railways. Its foundation stone was laid by the then Prime Minister of India Mr. Rajiv Gandhi...
, KapurthalaKapurthalaKapurthala is a city in Punjab state of India. It is the administrative headquarters of Kapurthala District. It was the capital of the Kapurthala State, a princely state in British India. The secular and aesthetic mix of the city with its prominent buildings based on French and Indo-Saracenic... - Wheel & Axle PlantWheel & Axle PlantThe name Wheel & Axle Plant has been changed to Rail Wheel Factory .RWF was established for manufacturing wheels and aAxles required for coaches and wagons of the Indian Railways....
, BangaloreBangaloreBengaluru , formerly called Bengaluru is the capital of the Indian state of Karnataka. Bangalore is nicknamed the Garden City and was once called a pensioner's paradise. Located on the Deccan Plateau in the south-eastern part of Karnataka, Bangalore is India's third most populous city and... - Rail Spring KarkhanaRail Spring KarkhanaThe Rail Spring Karkhana, located in Gwalior in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh, is a major railway workshop serving the Indian Railways....
, Gwalior
See also
Jamalpur GymkhanaJamalpur Gymkhana
The Jamalpur Gymkhana , often referred to as Gymkhana by its members, is a hostel for young apprentice officers of the Indian Railways. It is also a club like any other Gymkhana. The difference is that membership to this club is restricted only to those who spend their formative years in its...
Centralised Training Institutes of the Indian Railways
Centralised Training Institutes of the Indian Railways
The Indian Railways is the largest civilian employer in the world at approximately 1.6 million employees. 1200 officers form the line and staff management organisation...
Indian Railway Organisational Structure
Indian Railway organisational structure
The Indian Railways is organised broadly by functional groups of Indian Railway Service. This is traditionally how the co-operation is organised. The Indian Railways perhaps has been less adventurous in changing the structure; it has largely kept up what it got as a legacy since the British...
Indian Engineering Service