Cabinet approves 78-day productivity-linked bonus for 11.4 lakh non-gazetted railway employees

The Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has approved a festival bonus for railway employees. The government has decided to pay a Productivity Linked Bonus (PLB) to all eligible non-gazetted railway employees in the country.

Briefing the media on the Cabinet's decisions, Union Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said a bonus equal to 78 days' wages had been sanctioned on the occasion of Diwali to recognise the railway employees' outstanding work. About 11,40,770 railway employees will benefit directly. The Centre will spend a total of Rs 2,009.61 crore on it.

The bonus is paid to eligible employees every year before the Durga Puja and Dussehra holidays. This year too, about 11.40 lakh non-gazetted railway employees are being given a bonus equal to 78 days' wages. The bonus encourages employees to work towards improving the functioning of the railways.

The maximum amount payable to each eligible employee for 78 days is Rs 17,951. It will be paid to employees in different categories, such as track maintainers, loco pilots, train managers, guards, station masters, supervisors, technicians, technician helpers, pointsmen, clerks and other Group C staff.

The railways performed well in 2025-26. They set a record by carrying 1,670 million tonnes of freight and transported about 7.41 billion passengers.

Meanwhile, railway unions and various employee organisations have been demanding that the wage ceiling used to calculate the bonus be raised. The bonus is currently calculated on a basic pay of Rs 7,000, but in view of inflation the demand to raise the ceiling to Rs 18,000 is gaining strength. If that happens, employees' bonus could rise substantially in future.

Earlier, the productivity linked bonus for non-gazetted railway employees was calculated on a wage ceiling of Rs 7,000 and 78 days' wages, so employees received a maximum of Rs 17,951 a year. The Indian Railway Technical Supervisors Association (IRTSA) had demanded that the wage ceiling for the calculation be raised. The association says the ceiling for employees at Level 2 and above should be raised to Rs 18,000 and dearness allowance (DA). It also suggested that the bonus be calculated on the basis of employees' different pay levels.