Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw informed the Rajya Sabha on Friday that following a shortfall highlighted in a CAG report, four new Track Recording Cars have been commissioned to facilitate thorough checks of train track parameters.
Vaishnaw addressed queries posed by All India Trinamool Congress MP Derek O’Brien, who inquired about the completion of railway track safety inspections in light of the CAG’s observation that 50 percent of compulsory track safety inspections had not been conducted.
What more did Vaishnaw say?
The Railway Minister stated that The Comptroller and Auditor General’s report highlighted reduced inspections conducted by the Track Recording Car (TRC) during the study period. “TRC is only a means to carry out super checks of track parameters measured and monitored by permanent way gang, junior engineers, senior section engineers and tests checked at assistant divisional engineer level,” he added.
In instances where TRCs are unavailable, alternative methods such as the Oscillation Monitoring System (OMS) are utilised for track monitoring. Additionally, four new TRCs have been commissioned to ensure thorough inspections and to address any deficiencies in track monitoring by TRCs, he elaborated in a written response.
Vaishnaw highlighted that the Indian Railways implements a structured system of scheduled inspections by railway personnel. This system encompasses daily inspections by keymen, as well as inspections and monitoring at predetermined intervals conducted by inspecting officials at different levels using methods such as on-foot inspections, trolley inspections, footplate inspections, and inspections from the last vehicle.
“Detailed inspections are carried out by officials as per schedule stipulated in Indian Railway Permanent Way Manual (IRPWM) and entered in web enabled Track Management System (TMS) on regular basis,” Vaishnaw said.
He added that deficiencies in inspections are displayed on the TMS dashboard, triggering alerts for controlling officers to initiate requisite preventive and corrective measures. Additionally, he emphasised that TRCs and Oscillation Monitoring Systems (OMS) monitor track geometry parameters comprehensively at specified intervals.
(With PTI inputs)