Fourth Conference of EREU Successfully Held in Asansol

Fourth Conference of EREU Successfully Held in Asansol

The fourth conference (BGM – Biennial General Meeting) of EREU (Eastern Railway Employees Union) was successfully held on April 20, 2025, at Comrade D.N. Das Nagar, Andal, Asansol Division, Eastern Railway. On this occasion, the stage was dedicated to Comrade Chandan Kumar and the auditorium to Comrade Mrityunjay Majhi.

The enthusiasm generated among railway employees by the remarkable performance of IREF (Indian Railway Employees Federation) affiliates in recent elections was visibly reflected in the BGM. The conference was attended by 120 delegates from various divisions and workshops of Eastern Railway, along with 20 guests from different organizations. The chief guest of the conference was Sarvjeet Singh, General Secretary of IREF.

After the flag hoisting ceremony and a one-minute silence in memory of martyrs, in the absence of union secretary Partha Banerjee due to illness, Rabi Sen presented the secretary's report.

Addressing the conference, Sarvjeet Singh called for intensifying the movement against the government’s anti-worker policies, particularly privatization, NPS/OPS, and the four new labor codes. He emphasized the urgent need to strengthen zonal unions, stating: "A strong zonal union means a strong IREF, and a strong IREF means a strong AICCTU." He added that railway employees are looking for a viable alternative, and recent elections have proved this — hence, we must work hard to turn the aspirations of railway workers into reality.

He called for organizing widespread demonstrations across the country to ensure the success of the All India General Strike called by central trade unions on May 20.

On this occasion, R.R. Bhagat, National President of AILRSA, also addressed the conference, emphasizing the need to intensify day-to-day activities at the branch level and form more branches.

Other speakers included Subhasis Bagchi, General Secretary, SER Mazdoor Union; Pradeep Banerjee, W/P, CIWEU; Jaydev De, President, Cossipore Gun and Shell Factory; Surender Singh from AICCTU; Railway trade union leaders Partha Sil, Subhash Chatterjee, Swadesh Chatterjee, and Krishanu Bhattacharya.

After a lively discussion and approval of the draft report by the delegates, the conference elected a 15-member Central Executive Committee.

Sangram Banerjee was elected as President, and Manoj Kumar Roy as General Secretary.