Reason for Odisha crash 'change in interlocking system', nothing to do with kavach: Railway Minister

Interlocking is an integral part of railway signalling that regulates the movement of trains on tracks to ensure safe passage and unhindered flow of traffic.

BALASORE: The root cause of the three-train crash in Odisha's Balasore district and the people responsible for it have been identified, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said on Sunday as rescue work at the site of the accident ended with the Railways aiming to restore normal services on the affected tracks in the next few days.

"The Commissioner of Rail Safety has carried out an investigation. It will not be appropriate for me to comment right now, let the inquiry report come out. However, the cause behind the accident and the people responsible for it have been identified," said Vaishnaw.

As the tragedy triggered a debate over the Kavach anti-collision system, the Congress demanded the resignation of the railway minister and asked when will the Modi government implement the much-hyped system nationwide, after testing.

The Railways Minister said the accident took place due to a change in electronic interlocking but maintained that the crash had nothing to do with the Kavach system. Interlocking is an integral part of railway signalling that regulates the movement of trains on tracks to ensure safe passage and unhindered flow of traffic.

Row over Kavach

Kavach is an automatic train protection (ATP) system, developed by the Research Design and Standards Organisation jointly with three Indian firms. Kavach controls train speed by automatically braking if the driver fails to apply the brakes on time.

"Restoration work is being carried out on a war footing and tracks have already been laid on one of the main lines. We have mobilised all resources. I also want to say that Kavach has nothing to do with the accident. This accident occurred due to changes to the electronic interlocking system. The remarks of (West Bengal Chief Minister) Mamata Banerjee are not true," Vaishnaw said.

The West Bengal Chief Minister on Saturday said the triple train accident was the "biggest of the century" and a proper investigation was needed to unravel the truth. Banerjee, who has been the Railway minister twice, said the crash could have been averted had the anti-collision system been operational on this route.

"The rescue operation has been completed. We are starting the restoration work. The Kavach system was not available on this route," Indian Railways spokesperson Amitabh Sharma said.

#WATCH | The rescue operation has been completed, now we are starting the restoration work. Kawach was not available on this route: Amitabh Sharma, Railways Spokesperson on #BalasoreTrainAccident pic.twitter.com/s8Q0Kb4goE

— ANI (@ANI) June 3, 2023

The Railways is currently working on the Kavach system along the Delhi-Mumbai and Delhi-Howrah routes at an estimated cost of Rs 1000 crore.

The anti-train collision system or Kavach, which literally means armour, were promoted by the Railways as the world's cheapest automatic train collision protection system which enables it to stop on its own if the digital system notices any manual error like "jumping' of the red signal or any other malfunction.

However, the expansion is still in its budding stage and will take years before all important routes are covered.

(With online desk inputs)

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