The Largest Employer in the World

Since I’ve spend a lot of time in the Indian Railway system, I thought I would devote a whole entry to this organization, which is often sited as the largest employer in the world. I haven’t been able to confirm this statement, but it sounds about right to me. Personally, I think I could bring a little efficiency to this organization. There are about 14 different railways in India, all under government control, that connect the entire country. An overnight train journey (not a trip) of 15+ hours is considered normal to the average Indian and most wouldn’t consider traveling any other way.

Employment with the railways provides a stable, well-respected job and there seems to be a fair amount of nepotism. Here’s an example. Ani works for the railways. So does his father (well, he’s retired), his brother, two of his sisters, one of his brother-in-laws, his mother’s brother, and two of his cousins. And that’s just a start.

Indian Railways has its own medical team and hospitals. They sponsor athletic teams that compete across the country and internationally. They sponsor Boy Scout and Girl Scout troops (actually I think they are called Guides here). In any case, their reach is wide.

On my travels from Delhi down to Goa, I had the pleasure of getting to ride in the three main classes of travel, 2nd class A/C, 3rd class A/C and Sleeper class. You will notice that Sleeper class does not have A/C in its name, therefore there is no air conditioning.

I didn’t experience much of a difference between 2nd class and 3rd class. There is air conditioning in both. And bed a sheet and blanket are provided for overnight journeys. And on the nicer trains, meals are even included that aren’t that bad. The only difference is that in 2nd class, there are 6 beds in a cabin, while in 3rd class there are 8. And – there are curtains in 2nd class. Maybe this is the important difference.

Sleeper class is VERY different story. The tickets are incredible inexpensive (even according to Indian standards). Because the train from Pune to Goa was virtually full, we were only able to get seats in Sleeper class. At first I thought the lack of A/C would be the major problem, but in reality, it was the fact that the windows were open (due to the lack of A/C). This resulted in lots of noise from the train and frequent foul odors coming through the windows throughout the night. In the end, I got used to my surroundings and managed to sleep for a few hours of my 14 journey.

All in all, the train really is the lifeline of India and the country would not be the same without it.