Kalinga Utkal Express derailment: Why Indian Railways is not able to fix the issue of passenger safety
With allegations of negligence against railway workers mounting, a look at how under-investment and lack of technology upgrade has killed the country's most-reliable mode of transport.
In Short
- At least 21 people were killed when 14 coaches of Kalinga Utkal Express derailed.
- It raises questions on passenger safety that have plagued Indian Railways.
- According to NCRB figures for 2015, 859 rail accidents occurred due to mechanical defects.
The Kalinga Utkal Express derailment which has so far killed 24 people and injured nearly 100 passengers has exposed the Railways' inability to resolve the problem of passenger safety and security.
In an audio clip that has surfaced today, a gateman alleges negligence and carelessness on part of the railway workers that caused the accident in Khatauli, Muzaffarnagar in Uttar Pradesh on Saturday evening.
Earlier, some locals near the accident site and a few passengers had alleged that maintenance of the tracks was underway when the Kalinga Utkal Express derailed.
While officials remain tight-lipped on the exact cause of the Utkal Express accident, a recent safety report submitted to the Ministry of Railways said that derailments cause maximum deaths and injuries, and in most cases, failure of railway staff causes the accident.
A task force on safety, which was set up after the Indore-Patna Express derailed near Pukhrayan in Kanpur last November and killed more than 150 people, found that rail fracture and inadequate maintenance are often the cause of mishaps.
The report, which was drafted by senior railway officials, called for technology upgrade for maintenance, and said that "Rails is a complex exercise and must be automated as much as possible to reduce dependence on human judgement".
According to National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) figures for 2015, 859 railway accidents occurred due to mechanical defects such as poor design and track faults.
UNDER-INVESTMENT IN RAILWAYS
Over-worked tracks and lack of maintenance are one of the main reasons for rail accidents. Many of the rail tracks have been used beyond their capacity, and some of the most fatal accidents in recent years, including the Indore-Patna Express derailment, took place on such railway sections.
A report by the Standing Committee on Railways on safety and security in December last year identified under-investment in Railways as one of the reasons for more rail accidents. The report stated that while passenger and freight traffic has increased by 1,344 per cent and 1,642 per cent respectively from 1950 to 2016, the Railways' route kilometres have increased by only 23 per cent.
The Standing Committee report also observed that the modern Linke-Hoffman Busch (LHB) coaches do not witness higher casualties in case of derailment as the coaches do not pile on each other, and recommended that the Indian Railways completely switches to LHB coaches.
The Kalinga Utkal Express was running with the old-style coaches and not not the LHB-variety coaches. As the train derailed, some of the its coaches piled on each other, killing many passengers on the spot.
HOW TO FOCUS ON PASSENGER SAFETY
While raising red-flags for the Railways, the Standing Committee on Railways also offered ways to improve passenger safety. The committee suggested that a separate department is made in-charge of passenger safety and security. "The Ministry of Railways should appoint a Member (safety) to provide dedicated focus to railway safety operations," the report noted.
Regular training of railway staff on standard protocols and measures as well as new technology features can also improve passenger safety, given that failure of railway staff causes many accidents. "The course can cover case studies of accidents due to common errors, pattern of working, modernisation and technology upgradation," the Standing Committee on Railways report said.
A timeline of some of the big rail accidents in the last few years:
January 22, 2017: Jagdalpur-Bhubaneshwar Express derailed near Kuneru station in Vizianagaram district of Andhra Pradesh. Forty one people were killed.
November 20, 2016: Indore-Patna Express derailed in Pukhrayan near Kanpur, killing 150 people and injuring another 150.
August 4, 2015: Two passenger trains, Kamayani Express and Janata Express, derailed in Madhya Pradesh. Thirty-one people were killed, and more than 100 were injured.
May 25, 2015: Rourkela-Jammu Tawi Muri Express derailed in Kaushambi district of Uttar Pradesh. Eight bogies of the train derailed, leaving five dead and more than 50 injured.
March 20, 2015: Dehradun-Varanasi Janata Express derailed in Rae Bareli, Uttar Pradesh. Death toll was 58, while more than 150 passengers were injured.
February 13, 2015: 10 people killed, nearly 150 injured when nine bogies of Bangalore-Ernakulam Intercity Express derailed on the outskirts of Bengaluru.
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