About 150 employees at Delhi Airport Expressline could lose jobs

Delhi Metro Rail Corporation plans to retain about 250 employees

The Delhi Airport Metro Expressline may have changed hands with the walking away of Reliance Infrastructure but some 150 employees working for the first privately run metro system in the country are set to lose job. Delhi Metro Rail Corporation that has taken over the service after the private operator expressed its inability to run it, however, plans to retain about 250 employees.

Among those who are expected to face the heat are senior management functionaries of Delhi Airport Metro Expressline Ltd (DAMEL), a special purpose vehicle of RInfra, a person close to the development told Business Standard. Besides, private security personnel deputed at the stations would also been shown the door since DMRC plans to replace private security with Central Industrial Security Force (CISF).

Most of the employees that DMRC plans to retain would be from the lower management and workers on stations. These people would be rolled out offer letters from DMRC by the end of July. DMRC plans to hire them on one year contract basis.

DAME currently has 400 employees on its payroll. DMRC will pay their salaries since July 1 to DAME.  DMRC executives revealed that many issues could arise if the higher management from Reliance would be hired. “Their salaries are higher than those in DMRC and the management staff of DMRC could have problems with that,” said an official closely associated with the project.

DMRC also thinks that it is viable for the Express line to have a lean management and worker staff as money and time is spent on their pre-employment training. Among the staff retained are “highly skilled people like train drivers and station operators” that cannot be easily replaced. “If we want to run smooth services we have to retain them,” said the official.

Since July 1 DMRC has taken over the operations of Airport Expressline, ‘in the larger public interest’ after R-Infra walked out of the project citing ‘material breach’ of the concessionaire. A team of hundred people from DMRC had taken over the operations of Airport Expressline last month. “We are currently in the process to screen people and we will come out with our decision towards the end of July,” Sharat Sharma, Director Operations, DMRC told to Business Standard.

The people who would not be retained by DMRC would have to make settlements with their employer--R-Infra according to the terms of employment contract. RInfra refused to comment on how it would compensate its  staff which will not be retained by DMRC.

DMRC and DAME are under a legal face off through arbitration. Claims worth more than Rs 795 crore excluding Reliance's claims of 100% of the company’s debt and 130% of its equity are to be settled under arbitration.