CAG’s 2022 report on ‘Derailments in Indian Railways’ flagged multiple shortcomings
Recently, A report titled ‘Derailment in Indian Railways’ has been released by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG).
According to this report, between the financial year 2018 and 2021, 69% of the train accidents occurred due to derailment of trains.
Facts highlighted in this report:
- The main factor responsible for derailment of trains is the lack of maintenance of tracks. After this, the deviation in excess of the permissible limit in the prescribed parameters for the tracks is responsible.
- The targets fixed for renewal of tracks were not in consonance with the actual requirement at the ground level.
- After the Odisha train accident, the issue of railway safety and the role of technology in its solution has become a hot topic of discussion.
- It is believed that the Odisha train accident was caused by a change in the Electronic Interlocking (EI) system.
- EI system is a processor based system. It is an integral part of railway signalling. Through this, rail transport in the yard is controlled, so as to ensure safe movement of trains in the controlled area.
Measures by Indian Railways for the improvement of Rail Transport Safety:
- A Railway Safety Fund called Rashtriya Rail Sanraksha Kosh (RRSK) has been constituted.
- Railway Safety Commission has been constituted under the Ministry of Civil Aviation. It deals with issues relating to the safety of railway operations.
- The trains are being fitted with Linke Hofmann Busch (LHB) type coaches as the Integral Coach Factory (ICF) coaches were more prone to derailments.
- To enhance the safety of running trains, Automatic Train Protection (ATP) system named “Kavach” is being installed.
Kavach System
It has been developed by the Research Designs and Standards Organization (RDSO) of the Ministry of Railways.
Key features:
- It helps to protect the loco pilot from ignoring the signal in case of danger and over speeding.
- If the loco pilot fails to apply the brakes, it automatically controls the speed of the train by applying the brakes.
- It continues to run trains even in bad weather conditions like dense fog.
- It prevents collision of trains through direct communication between loco-pilot.
- It provides SOS (Emergency Message) facility in case of any accident.
Source – The Hindu
