COVID-19: RBE No.65/2025 – Counting of Stay at Home Period

No.E(NG)I-2025/IC-I/1, dated 07.07.2025

Sub: Counting of stay at home period during COVID-19 Lockdown as duty for railway servants undergoing training for the purpose of increments.

Ref: E(NG)I/90/IC-I/1, dated 04.02.1991 (RBE No.25/1991).

1. As the Railways are aware, the training period spent by a railway servant, where on remuneration of stipend or otherwise, is to be treated as duty, provided it is followed by confirmation, for the purposes of increments.

2. One of the Zonal Railways has sought to know whether the period spent at home during nationwide lockdown due to COVID-19 pandemic be reckoned as duty also for the purpose of increments.

3. It is hereby clarified that the Board had already issued instructions vide RBE No.109/2020 on releasing of held up payments of stipends to the trainee railway servants for the period they had stayed at home during the lockdown due to COVID-19, subject to a condition that this period must not exceed six months.

4. In view of this, the matter has once again been examined and it has further been decided that as a one-time measure the stay-at-home period (up to a maximum of six months only) of trainee railway servants due to nationwide lockdown due to COVID-19 may be treated as duty for the purposes of increments.

Hindi version will follow.

Download Railway Board Circular RBE No.65/2025

Forward reference ⇒ RBE No.