Bhubaneswar: East Coast Railway (ECoR) will rationalise more than 1,200 posts in 2026-27 as part of a nationwide manpower optimisation drive initiated by Railway Board, according to an official document issued on April 24.Under the zonal targets finalised by the railway ministry, ECoR has been asked to rationalise 1,239 posts, which is about 2% of its sanctioned strength of 61,956 employees as on April 1, 2026. The exercise will involve a mix of redistribution of surplus staff and surrender of posts, and will form a key performance indicator (KPI) for the zone in the coming financial year.The rationalisation targets were formally communicated to all zonal railways through an order signed by Amit Singh Mehra, director (MPP), Railway Board.Across Indian Railways, the total rationalisation target for 2026-27 has been fixed at 29,608 posts against a total sanctioned workforce of about 14.8 lakh employees. Zones have been directed to carry out the exercise through the HRMS portal, ensuring digital monitoring and greater transparency.The ECoR, which plays a crucial role in freight movement — particularly coal, minerals and port-based traffic from Odisha and adjoining states — has seen steady growth in both loading and revenue over the past few years. Officials indicated that manpower rationalisation would go hand-in-hand with redeployment to core operational areas, especially safety, train operations and asset maintenance.The Railway Board has also instructed zones to achieve the rationalisation targets progressively on a quarterly basis, and avoid end-of-year accumulation of surrendered posts — a practice that had drawn criticism in the past.The targets will be incorporated into the annual memorandum of understanding (MoU) to be signed between the general managers of zonal railways and the Railway Board, effectively linking manpower optimisation with performance assessment.For ECoR, headquartered in Bhubaneswar, the challenge will be to balance efficiency gains with operational demands on busy trunk routes and industrial corridors. Railway sources said internal reviews are already underway to identify surplus positions and potential redeployment, while ensuring that passenger services and freight operations remain unaffected.
