Last month’s deadly multi-train collision at Balasore — which was caused by tampering of signalling equipment, and left at least 295 people dead, with over a thousand injured — may have shocked the Railways into speeding up its overhaul of signalling systems at all stations. This involves converting the system from conventional relay interlocking to electronic interlocking technology, which is harder to tamper with.
In the 12 years since the electronic interlocking technology was introduced in the country, less than 40% of India’s 7,325 railway stations have made the switch. After a recent high-level meeting on increasing the pace of the revamp, held in the aftermath of the Balasore accident, top Ministry officials told The Hindu that they aim to overhaul the remaining stations in about six years.
