Key initiatives of Indian Railways to boost safety of passengers and freight are still to come on stream even though hundreds of people are being killed in rail accidents every year. The Railways is working on installing anti-collision device (ACD) and setting up an online system to monitor the condition of its rolling stock but both have not come into commercial operation as of now.
In 2008-09, the Railways had called for bids to set up an online monitoring system that could provide early information on quality of rolling stock. However, the projects have not been awarded so far. A senior executive in one of the bidders said that ?mechanical department of Indian Railways is sitting on the project since last three years?.
The Railways is still carrying out trials of the ACD system developed by its subsidiary Konkan Railway Corporation 11 years ago. It conducted the trials in the northeast frontier railway first and then revised the specifications of the device. It is now undertaking trials with the modified device on the southern railway and expects to install the system across the railway network only by the end of 2013-14.
ACD is a self-acting device that warns the train driver of any impending accident-like situation within a three-km range. ?The ACD system is working successfully in the Konkan region of Maharashtra and can be utilised in the rest of the country. But the final decision rests with Indian Railways,? a senior official in Konkan Railway Corporation said, requesting anonymity.
The Comptroller & Auditor General of India has also pointed out irregularities in the implementation of railways’ Corporate Safety Plan. In its report for 2010-11, CAG said that many zones could not achieve the targets set for them on reduction in defects on track, rolling stock and overhead equipment. It also noted that although the overall accident figures came down over the years (see table), accidents at level crossing and cases of collision increased in some zones. The Railways had prepared a corporate safety plan that is to be implemented by 2013 in two phases at an outlay of R31,835 crore.
This month, three railway accidents killed more than 100 people and injured more than 280. On July 7, a collision between a train and a bus near Etah in UP killed 40 people and injured many. On July 10, Delhi-bound Kalka Mail derailed at Malwa station in UP. The death toll in Sunday’s derailment rose to 68 on Tuesday with rescuers pulling out 30 more bodies. So far are 259 people are reported injured in the accident. On the same day, an IED blast threw a passenger train offtrack in Kamrup, Assam, injuring 40 people.