High-level probe launched by railway on Odisha train crash

New Delhi: A high-level investigation into the train accident in Odisha has been launched by the railways and will be overseen by the South Eastern Circle commissioner of railway safety.

Investigations into all such accidents are conducted by the commissioner of railway safety, who reports to the Ministry of Civil Aviation.

“A M Chowdhary, CRS, SE Circle, will inquire into the accident,” a railway spokesperson said on Saturday.

More than 233 people have been killed and over 900 injured in the crash on Friday involving the Bengaluru-Howrah Superfast Express, the Shalimar-Chennai Central Coromandel Express and a goods train.

While it is not clear what caused the crash, sources indicate a possible signalling failure.

In February, close on the heels of a head-on collision between two goods trains in Uttar Pradesh, the railways launched a month-long safety drive to prevent accidents such as derailment and overshooting of signals by loco pilots.

Under the drive, senior officers from the Railway Board, zonal railways and divisions were instructed to visit various sections, lobbies of crews, maintenance centres, work sites etc. and carry out a “thorough review of the working practices” to check and enforce safe operational and maintenance practices prescribed to prevent accidents or unusual incidents.

The Indian Railways is in the process of installing “Kavach”, an anti-train collision system, across its network.

Kavach alerts when a loco pilot jumps a signal (Signal Passed at Danger — SPAD), which is the leading cause of train collisions. The system can alert the loco pilot, take control of the brakes and bring the train to a halt automatically when it notices another train on the same line within a prescribed distance.

With PTI inputs