Indian Railways to Enhance Safety with Kavach System Installation

The Indian Railways will allocate a significant portion of its budget to train safety and the installation of the automatic train-protection system, Kavach, according to Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw. Speaking about the Union Budget 2024-25, Vaishnaw revealed that Rs 2,62,200 crore has been earmarked for the railways, marking a record allocation for capital investment.

Representative image

A substantial part of this allocation, Rs 1,08,795 crore, is dedicated to safety-related activities. These include replacing old tracks with new ones, improving the signalling system, constructing flyovers and underpasses, and installing Kavach. Vaishnaw highlighted that installing Kavach is the top priority among these safety measures.

Focus on Safety and Modernisation

The upgraded version of Kavach, known as Kavach 4.0, has recently received approval from the Research Designs and Standards Organisation. With this approval, its installation will proceed rapidly. Optical fibre cable, a component of Kavach, has already been laid over 4,275 km. Other components like telecom towers, track RFID devices, station Kavach, and loco Kavach are also being installed swiftly.

Comparing the current budgetary allocation to that during the UPA rule, Vaishnaw noted that around 2014, the allocation was about Rs 35,000 crore. Today, it has surged to Rs 2.62 lakh crore. This increase reflects Prime Minister Narendra Modi's focused approach over the past decade.

Infrastructure Expansion and Electrification

Before 2014, only 20,000 km of rail routes were electrified over 60 years. However, in the last decade alone, 40,000 km have been electrified. In 2014, an average of 4 km of new tracks were constructed daily. In contrast, last financial year saw an average of 14.5 km per day, totalling 5,300 km of new tracks.

The railway minister mentioned that initiatives taken in the past decade will continue. These include expanding railway infrastructure, removing bottlenecks, boosting engine and coach manufacturing, and introducing new technology.

Passenger Services and Employment

The railways cater to low and middle-income passengers by maintaining a ratio of one-third air-conditioned coaches to two-thirds general coaches in train sets. Due to increased demand for general coaches, an additional 2,500 general coaches will be manufactured this financial year. Furthermore, another decision has been made to produce 10,000 more general coaches to meet rising demand.

Regarding employment in the railways over the past decade under Modi's regime compared to the UPA rule: "In 10 years of the UPA rule," Vaishnaw said "4.11 lakh jobs were offered in the railways," whereas "in 10 years of the Modi regime," five lakh jobs were offered," which is "20 per cent more than the UPA rule."

The budget covers both decisions related to manufacturing additional general coaches. The initiatives taken in recent years aim to enhance passenger services while addressing employment needs within the railways sector.

This comprehensive approach ensures that Indian Railways continues to modernise while prioritising safety and passenger comfort.