Security on Railways (IR) dominates TV debates and media narratives each time there’s a main mishap. Nevertheless, with no main railway accident in latest months — barring the unlucky stampede at New Delhi railway station on February 15 —that is the time to rise above the din and relook at railway security.
Each time railway security turns into a burning subject, critics declare IR prioritises optics over security, whereas the federal government alleges sabotage by exterior enemies. Each narratives miss the mark. Whereas accidents have declined, the sabotage idea, citing occasional obstructions on tracks, was by no means convincing as most circumstances have been too trivial to trigger a derailment. I’ve all the time maintained that whereas businesses examine, leaping to conclusions solely spreads panic.
A few latest railway security developments went unnoticed. First, the Commissioner of Railway Security, NE Railway, held IR’s engineering division liable for the Chandigarh-Dibrugarh Categorical derailment in Gonda on July 18, 2024, which claimed 4 lives. IR had earlier tried to attribute this accident to suspected sabotage, regardless of an absence of any telltale indicators. Provided that investigative businesses, together with the NIA, haven’t discovered sabotage in a number of circumstances they have been engaged in, IR should cease searching for a sabotage excuse as an alternative of addressing root causes and taking corrective measures.
Dedication to security
Second, within the Higher Home debate on the Railways (Modification) Invoice 2024, Railway Minister Vaishnaw highlighted the federal government’s dedication to security, citing an annual funding of over ₹1 lakh crore and a dramatic drop in railway accidents — from 171 to only 30 within the final decade. Whereas critics in opposition argue in any other case, the downward development in accidents and fatalities is plain.
This enchancment will not be solely because of the present authorities however on account of a long time of centered work: eliminating unmanned degree crossings, enhancing monitor upkeep and renewal, upgrading signalling methods, and changing outdated coaches with safer LHB fashions. It is usually acceptable that the large capital expenditure since 2014 has certainly accelerated these enhancements. Larger budgets for monitor, signalling, and rolling inventory will certainly improve security incrementally, however what about quantum leaps? One such measure is the Kavach signalling system. Parliament was knowledgeable that IR has been refining Kavach since 2016, resulting in the ultimate approval of Model 4 in July 2024. It was acknowledged that 15,000 km of monitor might be geared up with Kavach in 5 years. However regardless of a high-profile trial greater than three years in the past in media glare, not a single kilometre has been added past the prevailing 1,448 km within the Secunderabad space.
IR unexpectedly latched onto the Commissioner of Railway Security’s advice following the Vizianagaram accident on October 29, 2023, which left 17 useless and 34 injured. The advice was to equip all locomotives with Kavach, even in non-Kavach territory, to enhance security by way of its non-signalling anti-collision function. The spirit behind this was to maintain locomotives in readiness pending floor installations, though equipping the locomotive alone doesn’t unleash the complete potential of Kavach.
But, IR is pushing forward with fitment on locomotives alone at an estimated value of ₹8,000 crore, whereas progress on important floor installations — telecom towers, management panels, optical fibre cables, RFID tags — stays excruciatingly sluggish. Work has dragged on for years on the Delhi-Mumbai and Delhi-Howrah corridors.
One other essential imaginative and prescient for IR’s security should contain synthetic intelligence (AI). Can India lead the world in AI-driven rail security? With our huge expert manpower within the space, this management is throughout the realm of risk. IR has, nevertheless, been dabbling with AI-based functions for CCTV surveillance, crowd management, and passenger facilities, whereas bafflingly neglecting growth of AI-enabled instruments for real-time security interventions.
Given the impossibility of manually analysing the huge digital information from station loggers and locomotive/prepare microprocessors, AI is inevitable for real-time collation and evaluation.
If IR is severe about reaching near-zero accidents, these two areas — Kavach’s full deployment and AI integration — should be its prime priorities.
The author is Retd. GM Indian Railways and Unbiased Rail Advisor
