Syllabus: GS2/ Governance, GS3/Infrastructure
Context
- India has witnessed a worrying recurrence of train accidents caused by technical failures & human error in the recent.
What are the Major Causes of Accidents?
- Staffing Shortages in Safety-Critical Roles: Out of the one million positions that are directly engaged in operations and maintenance, there are more than 1.5 lakh vacancies in safety/operational posts.
- Infrastructure Constraint: Persistent concerns exist over delayed track renewal, outdated signalling systems, and frequent damage to signal and communication cables during maintenance and construction works — issues that the Railway Board has warned could have “catastrophic consequences.”
- Inadequate Safety Systems: Slow deployment means that most of the routes remain without a KAVACH, leaving them vulnerable to human-error or signalling failures.
- Human Error: It remains a key contributor like errors in signal setting, point switching, train control, fatigue due to long hours.
- Resource Allocation Imbalance: The Rashtriya Rail Sanraksha Kosh (RRSK) was instituted for safety upgrades, but utilisation has been uneven.
- Organisational and Accountability Deficit: Fragmented chain of responsibility among zones, divisions, and departments. Post-accident inquiries often end with suspension of staff but not structural reform.
Implications
- Economic Impact: Train accidents cause direct loss of life, infrastructure damage, compensation burden, and service disruption.
- Public Confidence: Repeated mishaps erode trust in public transport safety.
- Governance Credibility: Reflects weak oversight, bureaucratic inertia, and reactive rather than preventive administration.
- Technological Lag: Highlights India’s slow pace of safety technology adoption compared to global standards (e.g. Europe’s ETCS or Japan’s Shinkansen).
Related Government Measures and Initiatives
- KAVACH: An Automatic Train Protection (ATP) system that halts trains automatically to prevent collisions.
- Introduction of Modern trains: To enhance passenger experience and provide a comfortable journey, State of the Art Vande Bharat trains, Amrit Bharat Trains and Namo Bharat Rapid Rail with modern features have been introduced on Indian Railways.
- Elimination of level crossings: To improve safety of train operations and road users, all unmanned level crossings on Broad gauge have been eliminated.
- Amrit Bharat Station Scheme: It signifies a concerted effort by Indian Railways to modernize its infrastructure in order to elevate the travel experience for millions of passengers.
- Rashtriya Rail Sanraksha Kosh (RRSK): ₹1 lakh crore fund (2017–2022) for safety-related works — track renewal, bridge rehabilitation, signaling upgradation, etc.
Way Forward
- Railways need to accelerate the implementation of the Kavach system, apart from regular maintenance of tracks to avoid future accidents.
- There is also an urgent need to expedite the installation of black-box-type devices across its locomotives to enable the voice and video recording of the train’s crew member.
| Do you Know? – Indian Railways, often called the ‘Lifeline of India’, is the fourth-largest rail network in the world, spanning nearly 1,15,000 kilometres. – Indian Railways is the eighth-largest commercial employer in the world, with over 12 lakh employees. – The Commissioner of Railway Safety (CRS) under the Ministry of Civil Aviation investigates accidents, but its reports are largely recommendatory, not binding. |
Source: TH
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