The disruption in IndiGo’s schedule after the enforcement of Flight Duty Time Limitation (FDTL) norms has revived a long-standing but unresolved concern in Indian Railways of how fatigue among loco pilots is managed, and what this means for safety on an increasingly busy network. Loco pilots continue to operate under the far looser “Hours of Work and Period of Rest” (HOER) framework, which permits an average of 52 working hours a week. The All India Loco Running Staff Association’s demand is to cap duty at six hours for passenger trains and eight hours for goods trains, along with
Thursday, December 11, 2025 | 10:26 PM ISTहिंदी में पढें
IndiGo crisis: A reminder that Railways must carefully reassess duty hours
The problem is being compounded by staff shortages. As of March 1, 2024, nearly 15 per cent of train-driver posts were vacant across the network
 "indian railways, IRCTC, Cancellation")
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The European Union enforces strict duty-rest norms, the United States mandates minimum off-duty hours under its “Hours of Service” law, and advanced networks rely on formal fatigue-management systems backed by data and technology.
