New Delhi: The Railway Ministry has discontinued the practice of presenting gold-plated silver medals to retiring railway officials, days after allegations emerged over their quality and laboratory tests reportedly found the medals to be largely made of copper.
In a circular issued on Wednesday to heads of all railway zones and production units, the ministry said the decision was taken with the approval of the President. It directed that silver medals already procured or lying in stock be properly accounted for and “suitably used for other activities” to address utilisation concerns.
While the circular did not spell out the reasons behind the move, officials said the decision followed multiple concerns, including poor quality of medals supplied by outsourced vendors and the need for cost rationalisation amid rising silver prices.
The practice had been in place since March 2006, when the Railways began presenting a gold-plated silver medal, weighing about 20 grams, to employees on superannuation or voluntary retirement.
An official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the move addresses two issues—quality concerns and the discontinuation of a practice not followed by other ministries or departments. However, another official said the Railways could have resolved the issue by tightening procurement norms rather than scrapping the practice altogether.
“Instead of leaving procurement to individual zones and production units, the Railways could have tied up with agencies such as MMTC to ensure quality,” the official said.
