The tragic-three train accident in Odisha’s Balasore district, which killed 288 people and injured over 1000, has once again highlighted the need to install anti-collision devices in all trains, especially at a time when Indian Railways is introducing semi-high speed trains to cut short travel time. The Odisha accident could have been averted if a safety system in addition to the route relay interlocking system was set in place, to eliminate chances of accidents due to human failure.
According to the preliminary investigation report of the incident, it was observed that point 17A was strangely found to be set up for the loop line (in reverse condition) and as a result the Coromandel Express collided with the stationary goods train in the loop line. It is clear that the route relay interlocking system didn’t function properly. If it had functioned as intended, the signal would have remained red as point 17A was not properly locked. It is assumed that a technical glitch, which is not rare in automatic systems, took the superfast express train from the main line to the loop line. Here, the anti-collision device could have been of great help as it could have stopped the Chennai-bound train much before hitting the stationary goods train.
As a matter of fact, the plan to equip all trains with anti-collision devices is not new. In India, such a device was first successfully used by the Konkan Rail back in the early nineties. Although a proposal to install a similar system all over India was suggested, not much progress could be made in this regard due to paucity of funds. In the meantime, the railways developed its own anti-collision system last year and after a successful test, the decision was taken to equip the trains with this device which is much cheaper than the system being used in the Konkan Rail. But despite providing a cheaper option, the installation process has been slow as evidenced by the fact that none of the three trains involved in the said accident, had this facility, which could have prevented the loss of hundreds of innocent lives.
Indian Railway is the life line of the nation and is among one of the biggest rail networks in the world. Every day, thousands of passengers travel in trains for various purposes. While taking them to their destinations in the shortest time possible remains important, the safety and security of the passengers cannot be ignored. Any plan to achieve one goal by neglecting the other can be catastrophic as is evidenced by this accident. The Indian Railway needs modernisation, speed and most importantly strict safety mechanisms and regulations to be counted as one of the best in the world. If passengers do not believe train journeys to be safe, all achievements will come to naught. So, installation of anti-collision devices in trains coupled with closely monitored regulations are a must to ensure the safety of the passengers. Passenger safety must be prioritised in order to regain the public’s confidence in the Indian Railway system.