Safety Measures Taken in Indian Railways

Safety Measures Taken in Indian Railways

Improvement in Rail safety is a continuous process and constant endeavour is made to improve the same. Safety Audits/inspections are undertaken at regular intervals on all railway infrastructures with a view to identify weak areas in asset maintenance, safety procedure and systemic defects and to provide ways and means to prevent accidents.  Besides, periodical safety drives are launched from time to time to indicate safety consciousness amongst staff and to streamline safety aspects including maintenance of assets.   As a result of safety measures, Number of train accidents have been continuously decreasing from 135 in 2014-15 to 107 in 2015-16 and down to 104 in 2016-17. During the current year i.e. 2017-18 (from 1st April to 30th November 2017), a total of 49 consequential train accidents took place over Indian Railways in comparison to the 85 accidents in the corresponding period of the previous year,  which is  an improvement of 42 percent over last year. 

Apart from this following safety measures are undertaken:-

Steps for improving Tracks:

Railway tracks are replaced through track renewal works which is an ongoing process.  Track renewal works are undertaken as and when stretch of track becomes due for renewal on the basis of criteria laid down in Indian Railway Permanent Way Manual on age cum condition basis viz. traffic carried in terms of gross million tonnes & incidence of rail fracture/failure, wear of rails, and maintainability of track as per standards etc.  In case any stretch of track is not renewed in time due to various reasons including scarcity of funds, material etc. suitable speed restrictions, if required, are imposed to ensure safe running of trains. Additional funds are being provided through Rashtriya Rail Sanraksha Kosh (RRSK) and Mega Traffic Blocks are being arranged for executing these works.
For the year 2017-18, 3600 km target has been kept for track renewal.

 Digital type of machines for Ultrasonic Flaw Detection (USFD) testing of rails is being used which are more reliable. This technology is being extensively used in Indian Railways to detect flaws in rails and weld failures in advance and take remedial steps to avert train accidents.

Electronic monitoring of track geometry is carried out with Track Recording Cars (TRC) and Portable Oscillation Monitoring Systems (OMS) to detect track geometry defects for planning maintenance. Maintenance inputs are given to track and bridges as per requirement noticed during manual inspections, TRC & OMS runs and USFD testing to keep track in safe condition.

Steps for improving Signaling:

Electrical/Electronic Interlocking System with centralized operation of points and signals are being provided to eliminate human failure and to replace old mechanical systems.  These systems have been provided at 5661 stations upto 31.10.2017.

Complete Track Circuiting of stations to enhance safety for verification of track occupancy by electrical means instead of human element has been completed at about 5889 stations upto 31.10.2017.

Axle Counter for Automatic clearance of Block Section (BPAC) to ensure complete arrival of train before granting line clear and to reduce human element have been provided on 4935 block sections upto 31.10.2017.

Interlocking of Level Crossing Gates to protect Level Crossing Gate with signals to avoid accidents has been done at 10921 gates upto 31.10.2017.

Further Railways have been introducing following new safety technology for smooth and safe running of trains:

Train Protection & Warning System (TPWS) - Train Protection & Warning System (TPWS) mitigates safety risk of accidents/collisions due to loco pilot’s error of Signal Passing at Danger or over speeding. It is a proven European train protection technology and deployed extensively on World Railways.

Train Protection & Warning System (TPWS) based on this proven technology has been operationalized on 342 RKMs in following sections of Indian Railways:

(a)           Chennai - Gummidipundi Suburban Section of Southern Railway (50 RKMs).
(b)          Dum Dum - Kavi Subhash section of Metro Railway, Kolkata (25 RKMs).
(c)           Hazrat Nizamuddin - Agra Section of Northern/North Central Railway 200 RKMs).
(d)          Basin Bridge - Arrakkonam Section of Southern Railway (67 RKMs).

Train Collision Avoidance System (TCAS) -  TCAS is a developmental project being taken on a limited section of Lingamapalli – Vikarabad – Wadi - Bidar section (250 km) on South Central Railway. Operational deployment of TCAS on Railways on Absolute Block Signalling sections will be taken-up after successful conclusion of the extended field trials and safety certification of system by Independent Safety Assessor (ISA).
                                                                 
Extended field trials and safety validation of system to Safety Integrity Level-4 (SIL-4) by an Independent Safety Assessor (ISA) is in progress.

All Diesel locomotives are turned out from maintenance sheds with proper checking and super checking by Senior Supervisors and Officers.   It is also ensured that all safety devices and equipment are functioning properly on all locomotives.

Fog PASS devices are provided to Crew working in fog affected areas.

It is ensured that no Crew is overdue for PME, Safety training, Refresher course and any other mandatory courses.

Preventive and predictive maintenance of the Railway assets is being undertaken to ensure safe train operation.  Time to time special safety drives are undertaken involving officers and supervisors.

Proliferation of LHB coaches that have better safety features. It has been decided to completely switch over to the manufacture of LHB coaches from 1st April 2018 onwards and stop the manufacture of ICF coaches. Around 3,000 LHB coaches shall be manufactured every year from 1st April 2018 onwards as against average of 1000 LHB coaches in last 5 yrs. It has also been planned to retrofit around 32,000 existing ICF coaches having a life of upto 15 years and having Screw Coupling with (Centre Buffer Coupler) CBC in the next 5 years.

UMLC (unmanned level crossings): Topmost priority for eliminating UMLC gates in a time bound manner up to December 2018 and deployment of Gate Mitra for the interim period.

This Press Release is based on the information given by the Minister of State for Railways Shri Rajen Gohain in a written reply to a question in Rajya Sabha on 15.12.2017 (Friday).

Integrated Security System In Railways

Integrated Security System In Railways

Based on the recommendations of a High Level Committee, 202 railway stations have been identified as sensitive for the purpose of installation of an Integrated Security System (ISS) to strengthen surveillance mechanism at these stations. ISS includes Close Circuit Television (CCTV) Cameras, Access control, Personal and Baggage Screening System and Bomb Detection system. Contracts have already been awarded for execution of ISS works over 129 Railway stations by fifteen Zonal Railways.

So far, 106 Railway stations have been covered with CCTV surveillance system under ISS over Central Railway, Eastern Railway, East Coast Railway, North Central Railway, North Eastern Railway, North Western Railway, Northeast Frontier Railway, Northern Railway, South Central Railway, South East Central Railway, South Eastern Railway, South Western Railway, Southern Railway and West Central Railway.

In addition, 139 Baggage Scanners, 32 Under Vehicle Scanning System (UVSS), 217 Door Frame Metal Detectors (DFMD) and more than one thousand Hand Held Metal Detectors (HHMD) have so far been provided under ISS. Issues concerning availability of eligible vendors, inspection of items, availability of budget, etc. were initially raised by Zonal Railways. These issues have since been addressed and all the Zonal Railways have been advised to ensure speedy implementation of ISS at all the identified sensitive stations.

Besides ISS, CCTV surveillance system is available over 288 other railway stations. In addition, 983 railway stations have also been identified for installation of CCTV cameras under Nirbhaya Fund.
Strengthening and upgradation of security infrastructure is an ongoing process. Accordingly, more stations will be brought under CCTV surveillance system alongwith other security equipment in due course.

This Press Release is based on the information given by the Minister of State for Railways Shri Rajen Gohain in a written reply to a question in Rajya Sabha on 15.12.2017 (Friday).

Initiatives Taken Towards Improvement of Cleanliness in Railways

Initiatives Taken Towards Improvement of Cleanliness in Railways

 Indian Railways have taken various initiatives in improving cleanliness of stations, trains, yards and all other premises.  Some of the major initiatives taken towards improvement of cleanliness are:

(i)     Mechanized cleaning methods have been adopted in major stations.
(ii)   Regular intensive cleanliness drives are undertaken at various railway stations by Zonal Railways.
(iii) Enforcement of Indian Railways (Penalties for activities affecting cleanliness at railway premises) Rules, 2012 has been intensified.
(iv) Use of CCTVs has been extended for monitoring of cleanliness activities at major stations.
(v)   For better cleaning of coaches of trains, mechanized coach cleaning at Depots, On Board Housekeeping Services (OBHS) in important long distance trains, "Clean My Coach" and Clean Train Station (CTS) schemes have been provided.

This has resulted in visible improvement in cleanliness.

New Standard Bid Document (SBD) has been issued recently which is being implemented for integrated housekeeping of stations and trains. This will further improve effectiveness of housekeeping contracts.

 This Press Release is based on the information given by the Minister of State for Railways Shri Rajen Gohain in a written reply to a question in Rajya Sabha on 15.12.2017 (Friday).

Cabinet approves second financial restructuring of Konkan Railway Corporation Ltd.

Cabinet approves second financial restructuring of Konkan Railway Corporation Ltd.

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has approved the Second Financial Restructuring proposal of Konkan Railway Corporation Limited (KRCL), a CPSE under the administrative control of the Ministry of Railways (MoR).

The conversion of Non-Cumulative Redeemable Preference Shares (RPS), amounting to Rs. 4,079.51 crore, held by President of India through Ministry of Railways, into Compulsorily Convertible Non-Cumulative Preference Shares (CCPS), has been approved. This will shore up the net worth of the Company after implementation of the new accounting standard IND AS.

 Implementation Strategy and targets:

 KRCL will have to present the previous year's Balance Sheet figures restated as per IND-AS, as on 31st March 2016 and those at the opening of the business i.e., as on 1st April 2015. The conversion of the Non-cumulative Redeemable Preference Shares (RPS) into Compulsorily Convertible non-cumulative Preference Shares (CCPS) w.e.f. 31st March 2015 will make KRCL's net worth positive.
 

Major Impact:

1. Net worth of KRCL will remain positive.
2. A positive Net Worth for the KRCL is a sine qua non for the purpose of raising funds from the market at viable rate of interest, obtaining better credit rating from rating agency, qualify for bidding for new contracts and to take up various sanctioned projects on Konkan Railway route etc
3. KRCL will not be categorized as a Sick Company as per DPE guidelines.

 Background:
 As per notification from Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) from the financial year 2016-17 onward, companies having net worth of Rs.500 crore or above as on 31st March, 2014, will have to adopt IND-AS (Indian Accounting Standards i.e. new Accounting Standards introduced on the basis of IFRS) in the preparation and compilation of Accounts. As per IND AS, the Non-Cumulative Redeemable Preference Shares are treated as "Compounded Financial Instruments" and disclosed in two components - other equity and financial liability. The liability component is equal to the present value of the redemption amount on the date of the issue, considering the discount rate at the date of the issue of the preference shares. The other equity represents the component equal to the total redeemable amount of the preference shares less liability component.

Thus, a part, of Non-Cumulative Redeemable Preference Share issued to President of India (through MoR) by KRCL will have to be shown as 'Outside Liability' 1 instead of 'Equity Capita' in the Balance Sheet of KRCL and the Net Worth of KRCL will turn negative.

 A negative net worth of KRCL will result in:
 (i)      poor credit rating of KRCL.
(ii)      difficulty in raising funds from market by KRCL,
(iii)     difficulty in bidding for new contracts by KRCL and
(iv)     KRCL will be categorised as 'sick company' as per DPE guidelines.
 In view of the above, KRCL had requested to convert the existing preference shares held in the name of President of India (through MoR)  into Compulsorily Convertible non-cumulative Preference Shares (CCPS) w.e.f. 31st March 2015, as CCPS can be considered as share capital under IND AS.

PIB

Identification Of Routes For Electrification Of Railway Tracks

Identification Of Routes For Electrification Of Railway Tracks

Indian Railways have prepared an Action Plan to electrify 38000 Route Kilometers in five years (2017-18 to 2021-22) for 100% electrification of its Broad Gauge (BG) rail routes.  

Year wise details are as under:

Year	Route Kilometer targeted for commissioning on electric traction.
2017-18	4000
2018-19	6000
2019-20	7000
2020-21	10500
2021-22	10500
Total	38000

Railway Electrification projects are not confined to State boundaries.  State-wise route kilometers of railway lines identified for electrification and planned for inclusion  in Budget 2018-19 are as under:-

SNo.	STATE	TOTAL ROUTE KILOMETERS IDENTIFIED FOR ELECTRIFICATION
1	Andhra Pradesh	385
2	Assam	1448
3	Arunachal Pradesh	12
4	Bihar	566
5	Chattisgarh	76
6	Gujarat	1088
7	Haryana	116
8	Himachal Pradesh	40
9	Jharkhand	293
10	Karnataka	1051
11	Kerala	150
12	Madhya Pradesh	416
13	Maharashtra	615
14	Mizoram	02
15	Odisha	583
16	Punjab	964
17	Rajasthan	1991
18	Telangana	301
19	Tamil Nadu	1016
20	Tripura	267
21	Uttar Pradesh	1308
22	Uttarakhand	185
23	West Bengal	802
	Total	13675

To achieve 100% electrification of Broad Gauge (BG) rail routes, pace of electrification has been increased from present average of 1700 route kilometer per Annum to 4000 Route Kilometer/Annum which will further be increased to 6000 Route Kilometers in 2018-19.

Further, to expedite electrification of railway lines in the country, various steps have been taken, which inter-alia include award of Engineering Procurement and Construction (EPC) contracts, better project monitoring mechanism, enhancing power of field units for award of contracts including sanction of estimates and increasing the number of executing agencies from existing three to six by entrusting electrification works to new agencies viz.  Indian Railway Construction Company, Rail India Technical and Economic Services ad Power Grid Corporation of India Limited.

This Press Release is based on the information given by the Minister of State for Railways Shri Rajen Gohain in a written reply to a question in Rajya Sabha on 15.12.2017 (Friday).

Indian Railways holds special conclave on "Sampark, Samanvay, Samvad" to discuss and deliberate "Vision for New Railway - New India 2022"

Indian Railways holds special conclave on "Sampark, Samanvay, Samvad" to discuss and deliberate "Vision for New Railway - New India 2022"

Conclave aimed at designed to break silos (sampark), improve co-ordination (samanvay) and find solutions (samvad) to the critical issues facing Indian Railways

Shri Piyush Goyal motivated Railway employees to think out of the box to enable game changing reforms and bring about transformational results

Railway Minister Emphasised on no scarcity of resources for good ideas and need to scale up good projects avoiding time lag and delay

Topics covered included reforms to ensure highest standards of safety, punctuality and passenger comfort; improving the capacity and speed of trains; dynamic pricing including discounts in off peak seasons etc.

Guest Speaker, Shri Sonam Wangchuk felt that in the face of climate change, Indian Railways is a luxurious way to save the planet

The Ministry of Railways conducted a brainstorming conclave titled "Sampark, Samanvay, Samvad" to discuss and deliberate "Vision for New Railway - New India 2022". The conclave was attended by the Minister of Railways and Coal, Shri Piyush Goyal, the Minister of State for Railways, Shri Rajen Gohain, and more than 250 senior members of Indian Railways from across the country.
The high level conclave focused on transforming Indian Railways to meet Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s vision of ‘New India’ by 2022. This was in continuation to previous conclave, Rail Vikas Shivir in November 2016 during the tenure of the Minister of Commerce and Industry Shri Suresh Prabhu.

Today’s conclave was designed to break silos (sampark), improve co-ordination (samanvay) and find solutions (samvad) to the critical issues facing Indian Railways. Free and frank discussions were held, and all officers were encouraged to give their inputs and bring forth ground realities and potential impediments to implementation of new policies and reforms.

Speaking on the occasion, Shri Piyush Goyal motivated Railway employees to think out of the box to enable game changing reforms and bring about transformational results. He emphasised on the need to gear up Railways for New India by 2022 and his vision of New Railways 2022, which would ensure speed, safety and service for consumers.

He laid out 10 principles, which have helped in delivering results earlier in making India a coal surplus nation as well as in the rapid electrification of around 18,500 villages including in the remotest corners of the country. These principles include (1) Partnership with all stakeholders, (2) Decisive leadership, (3) Outcome oriented action, (4) Root cause analysis), (5) Rule of law and transparency, (6) Prioritisation of issues, (7) Time bound execution and fast dispute resolution, (8) Innovative financing, (9) Technology focus, and (10) Accountability and close monitoring.

He stressed how time bound execution would lead to meeting of cost targets and improve performance. Contributing to the discussions Shri Goyal emphasised that there was no scarcity of resources for good ideas. He mentioned the need to scale up good projects avoiding the time lag and delay caused by extensive pilot programmes without any further implementation.

Guest speaker, Shri Sonam Wangchuk, renowned educationist, scientist and innovator, who was also the inspiration for the popular "Three Idiots" film, spoke to the audience about his personal story of facing challenges and innovating in the face of adversity. His advice to have simple solutions to complex problemsstruck a chord, and was widely appreciated. He felt that in the face of climate change, Indian Railways is a luxurious way to save the planet.

The focus of the presentations was to transform railways to serve the passengers and customers. Some of the topics covered included structural, process and cultural reforms to ensure highest standards of safety, punctuality and passenger comfort; improving the capacity and speed of trains; dynamic pricing including discounts in off peak seasons; increasing freight modal share; and improving procurement to bring transparency, accountability and speed in order to reduce time and cost. Discussions were also held on how to boost the morale of the about 14 lakh railway employees in order to improve productivity as well improve their focus on consumers.

A digital chat room, which was open to all, allowed everyone to give suggestions, ideas and feedback on the various presentations.

The various subjects discussed in the conference included- Transforming IR through Safety & Punctuality - Structural process & cultural reforms, Transforming IR through Passenger Comfort & Aesthetics- Structural processes & cultural reforms, Strategis for imcresing carrying capacity & speed of trains, Introducing dynamic pricing- Premium  & Discount, Increasing freight modal share, Streamlining procurement to  reduce time & cost and Boosting morale & happiness of employees.