A latest petition has been filed in the Supreme Court, urging the installation of a safety shield system, known as the Kavach system, to prevent train accidents and ensure the safety of passengers across the country. This comes on the heels of the recent Gonda rail accident, which resulted in three fatalities.
Moreover, the petition filed by Supreme Court lawyer Vishal Tiwari, seeks the formation of an expert committee, headed by a retired judge, to oversee the implementation of the Kavach system. The system, developed indigenously by the Design and Standards Organization and Indian industry, is designed to prevent train collisions by automatically engaging the braking system if the driver loses control.
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Despite assurances given in the Supreme Court in April 2024, the Railways have been accused of delaying the implementation of the Kavach system, which has been successfully tested and installed on select routes. The petition urges the Supreme Court to intervene and issue a directive to expedite the implementation of the safety system.
However, the Kavach system, also known as the Automatic Train Protection System, has been installed on 1465 km of tracks and 139 locomotives on South Central Railway, with plans underway to expand it to the Delhi-Mumbai and Delhi-Howrah corridors. The petition highlights the need for a comprehensive safety system to prevent train accidents and protect the lives and property of rail passengers.
