Hit with spate of mishaps, Railways to speed up safety net of trains
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Railways to speed up Kavach coverage by scaling up speed 20 times
By Our Special Correspondent
New Delhi June 27: The Ministry of Railways is gearing up to accelerate additions of safety features in trains. The Railway Board is enlisting firms to speed up Kavach coverage of trains aggressively.
The Darjeeling train mishap involving Kanchanjunga Express is learnt to have jolted the Railway Board to accelerate the coverage of Kavach. “The Railways has reached out to firms to commit to installing Kavach in 6000 kms of rail routes each year,” said a senior official of the Railway Board.
The Optic fibre and telecom supported Kavach is an indigenously developed anti-collision device. Currently, Kavach has been installed in 121 trains and about 1450 kms of rail routes.
Eleven passengers had died in the Darjeeling mishap in which a goods train had hit the stationary Kanchanjunga Express from behind. Last year, triple train mishap had taken place in Balasore in Odisha in which 296 passengers had died.
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The Andhra Pradesh and Buxar train mishaps had again involved collisions and derailment of coaches.
“Union Minister for Railways has reached to firms who have been partners for installing Kavach. They have been asked to double their efforts for maximum coverage of Kavach in the railways,” added the official of the Railway Board.
The likes of Medha Engineering, Kernex Microsystems, and several others have been roped in by the Railways for expediting the speedy installation of Kavach, said the official.
The installation cost of Kavach is estimated to be ₹50 lakh per km. Kavach was certified by the Railways in 2019 for rollout in its network. It was being tested since 2016.
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The Railways claims to be according top priority to safety of passengers. But the spate of rail mishaps has jolted the Railway Board.
In five years since the certification of Kavach, Railways could add just 121 trains and 1450 kms under the safety net of the anti-collision device. The Railways average just about 300 kms of rail routes annually for Kavach coverage.
Now, the Railways is seeking 20 times more coverage of Kavach annually. “Since it may not be possible if only a handful of firms are engaged, the Railways is broadening the basket of enterprises who can scale it up,” added the official.
The Railways is likely to enhance the budget allocation next month for the Kavach installation in rail routes and trains.
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