Supreme Court Commends Indian Railways’ ‘Kavach’ System to Prevent Accidents

The Supreme Court has praised the efforts of the Indian Railways and the Central Government in curbing train accidents, particularly highlighting the development of the automatic train protection system ‘Kavach’ to prevent collisions. The court made these remarks while disposing of a petition related to passenger safety, which arose following a tragic triple-train accident in Odisha last June, claiming 293 lives.

In its statement on April 15, a bench headed by Justice Surya Kant expressed satisfaction with the actions taken by the Railways, stating, “We appreciate the steps taken by the Railways. That being so, we are satisfied that the initiation of these proceedings in public interest has achieved the purpose & the issues have been adequately addressed by the Union of India & the Railways.”

The court’s response came in light of a public interest litigation (PIL) filed by advocate Vishal Tiwari, which raised concerns regarding passenger safety and the effectiveness of anti-collision systems. The tragic accident in Balasore, involving the Kolkata-Chennai Coromandel Express, Bengaluru-Howrah Superfast Express, and a goods train, prompted the PIL. The Commissioner of Railway Safety (CRS) attributed the accident to lapses in signaling and the telecom department in its subsequent report.

The bench also acknowledged the steps taken by the Railways to enhance safety measures, improve track quality, train and sensitize staff, and implement technological advancements such as the ‘Kavach’ system. Developed in March 2022, ‘Kavach’ aims to regulate train speed by automatically applying brakes if the loco pilot disregards signals to stop or overspeeds.

Appreciating the efforts outlined in the status report submitted by Attorney General R Venkataramani, the court expressed confidence in the continued modernization of the Indian Railways and the effective implementation of the ‘Kavach’ system to ensure passenger safety.

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