How are drivers assigned to different trains?
A driver’s link (schedule) is such that once every so many days (34 days in the case of Mumbai division CR drivers) he has to work all the Mail / Express trains. Similarly the passenger drivers have their own links. When there is no A special (mail/express) driver available, a passenger (A grade) or Goods (C grade) driver officiates instead of the mail driver. Thus every A special driver works prestigious trains once every so many days. The mileage for a driver is usually limited to 8000km per month. The chief crew controller sees that a driver does not exceed that figure. If a driver exceeds the limit, he is paid special wages above the normal wages. EMU/DEMU trains in suburban sections are run with a single motorman in the driving cab. For most other trains, IR uses a crew of two persons to man the locomotive: a driver and an assistant driver. The assistant driver may be of any grade from B upwards (usually). The driver carries out most of the actual running of the train. The assista
