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Friday, August 5, 2011

Railway Safety:Efforts by Indian Government




Safety is accorded the highest priority by Indian Railways and all possible steps are undertaken on a continuing basis to prevent accidents and to enhance safety. Strategy of the Indian Railways for accident prevention include progressively achieving reduction in accidents attributable to human failure by way of introduction of modern technologies and devices and mechanization of maintenance. Safety measures taken by the Railways include timely replacement of over-aged assets, adoption of suitable technologies for upgradation and maintenance of track, rolling stock, signaling and interlocking systems, safety drives, greater emphasis on training of officials and inspections at regular intervals to monitor and educate staff for observance of safe practices. Safety devices/systems being introduced to prevent accidents include provision of Block Proving Axle Counters (BPAC), auxilliary Warning System (AWS), Fog Safe Device, Vigilance Control Device (VCD), Train Protection and Warning System (TPWS), Train Collision Avoidance System (TCAS)/Anti Collision Device (ACD) etc.

Auxiliary Warning System
AWS or the Auxiliary Warning System is a system of providing some advance notification of upcoming signal aspects to the motorman via a display panel in the driving cab of the EMU. The advance notification is done through trackside electromagnets that trigger relays in the passing EMU cabs. This was originally introduced by Western Railway for its Mumbai EMUs in the early 1980s. Central Railway introduced AWS somewhat later. Initially there were many teething problems with technology, including problems of pilferage of the trackside equipment, but these were mostly resolved by the 1990s.While there are still some differences between the two railways' AWS systems, the following description, which is based on the WR AWS, should give an idea of how the system works.At a high level, the AWS can be thought of as having three different principal states for responding to different signal aspects:1)Signal aspect is Red : Speed is limited to 15km/h.2)Signal aspect is Yellow : Speed is limited to 38km/h.3)Signal aspect is Green or Double Yellow : Speed is limited to 70km/h.


Fog safety device
 fog safety device will be a portable instrument that works on GPS and it will be fitted in engines. The devices can alert drivers about signals, railway crossings and also if someone is crossing the tracks in a range of four kilometres."
Vigilance Control Device
The Vigilance Control Device ensures the safe plying of trains. It also helps in data analysis for management review in case of derailment or any accident. Driving function like throttle, master controller, horn, sander, loco brake, train brake, dynamic brake, headlight, etc., are taken as input signals for VCD operation.
VCD improves vigilance and provides warning and brake application signals in a predefined manner. It also records data of penalty brake application event, VCD bypass, VCD suppression in a non-volatile memory for management reviews, if required. It is Windows-based data extraction and analysis software for report generation. Its user friendly data analysis software allows to configure the unit with predefined timing cycle parameters.
The Train Protection & Warning System (TPWS)
The Train Protection & Warning System (TPWS) is a train protection system deployed across the entire UK passenger railway network, as well as in Victoria, Australia. It automatically activates brakes on any train that has passed a signal at danger or is overspeeding. It is fitted at selected sites, including lines where automatic train protection (ATP) is installed.A standard TPWS installation consists of an on-track transmitter placed adjacent to a signal and activated when the signal is at `danger’ point. Any train that tries to pass the signal will have its emergency brakes activated. If the train is travelling at speed, this may be too late to stop it before the point of collision, therefore a second transmitter may be placed on the approach to the signal that applies the brakes on trains going too fast to stop at a signal, and this is positioned to safely stop trains approaching at upto 75 mph (120 km/h).
Anti Collision Device (ACD) :
The technology for ACD has been developed by Konkan Railway Corporation Ltd (KRCL) to avoid collision like situation like head-on collision, rear end and side collisions. The aim of ACD system is to minimize the impact of collisions by reducing speed. The position of train (latitude and longitude)is obtained through GPS. Each ACD radiates its position, track & identity through UHF radio.  The signal received by another ACD is processed and desired action initiated.
ACDs fitted (both in Locomotive and Guard's Van of a train) act as a watchdog in the dark as they constantly remain in lookout for other train bound ACDs, within the braking distance required for their relative speeds. They communicate through their radios and identify each other. If they happen to find themselves on the same track and coming closer to each other, they automatically restrain and stop each other, thereby preventing dangerous head-on and rear-endcollisions.
Loco ACD of a train also applies brakes to reduce the train speed either to 15 km/h if on approach it receives a message from other train bound ACD that has stopped in a block section on adjacent track (and driver of that train has yet not communicated that things are 'Normal') or to bring the train to a stop if train bound ACDs of other train are radiating 'train parted' message thereby preventing dangerous side collision that may occur due to infringement of adjacent track by a stopped or a 'parted' train, respectively.
Pilot project of "Provision of ACD Network" has been successfully commissioned recently on the Northeast Frontier Railway (of Indian Railways), covering 1736 Route km (of its Broad Gauge route). Final commissioning trials of ACD network installed on 760 km of Konkan Railway route is presently underway.
Anti Collision Device (ACD), which is an on-board train protection device and also the first ever device in the world indigenously developed by Konkan Railway with their Technical Partner Kernex Microsystems (I) Ltd, will be in place by 2013 on the entire Indian Railway network so as to reduce chances of Train collisions.



Each and every consequential train accident is enquired into either by Commission of Railway Safety under the Ministry of Civil Aviation or by a Departmental Enquiry Committee depending upon severity of the accidents. 
Based on the reports of Commission of Railway Safety and Departmental Enquiry Committees, out of 93 consequential train accidents during 2010-11, 59 were attributable to failure of Railway staff, 10 due to failure of other than Railway staff, 2 due to failure of equipment, 16 due to sabotage, 2 due to combination of factors, 4 due to incidental factors. Loss to Railway property in the above 93 consequential train accidents has been estimated to be approximately Rs. 71.93 crore. 

Findings/recommendations of the Commissioners of    Railway Safety/Departmental Enquiry Committees are examined by the concerned departments of Indian Railways for compliance. During 2010-11, major and minor penalties were imposed on 66 and 71 erring officials, respectively. Out of these, 23 Railway officials have been removed/dismissed from service. 









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