Indian Railways is the third largest train network in the world with over 66,000 km of rail lines across India and has expanded significantly since its inception in 1853. While most of these rail tracks were laid by the British before 1930, Indian Railways has worked to increase the speed of trains on these decades old rail tracks by using modern technology. On the other hand, a lot of work has been done to improve rail safety in India. According to a data from the CAG report “Derailments in Indian Railways” of 2022, Indian Railways spent more than Rs 1 lakh crore on Rashtriya Rail Suraksha Kosh (RRSK) works, which basically means, Railways spent more than Rs. Spent a lot of money over the years to improve rail safety in the country.
Yet, incidents like the Odisha train accident question the credibility of the work done to improve safety. On the other hand, Ministry of Railways is working for the modernization of Indian Railways. From operating engine-less trains like Vande Bharat Express to electrifying the rail network across the country and modernizing railway stations with airport-like facilities, rail travel has acquired a new significance in the last 9 years, led by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi is doing. BJP Govt. Here is a look at the technological advancements made by Indian Railways.
Vande Bharat Express
Vande Bharat Express is the poster boy of the Modi government’s definition of modern Indian Railways. Seeing the demand for premium and modern trains on the network, Indian Railways decided to introduce semi-high speed modern trains like Vande Bharat Express on many routes along with improving the quality of travel and upgrading many trains.
Railways began development and production of Train 18 at its Integral Coach Factory in Chennai and it was introduced in 2018 and later rechristened as Vande Bharat Express. The first Vande Bharat Express train between New Delhi and Varanasi was flagged off by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on February 15, 2019.
While the initial roll-out of the Vande Bharat Express was slow, the Indian Railways has picked up pace with one new route being introduced every month. So far, 18 Vande Bharat Express trains have been launched and the 19th route – Mumbai-Goa Vande Bharat was to be flagged off by Prime Minister Modi on June 3, a day after the Balasore train accident.
modern trains
Vande Bharat Express is more of a poster boy a statement that defines what Indian Railways trains will be like? All coaches of Vande Bharat Express have a stainless steel car body fitted with automatic doors with sliding footsteps, onboard computer for train control and remote monitoring. To reduce weight, future Vande Bharat trains will be made of aluminium.
The coaches also have GPS based audio-visual passenger information system, on-board hotspot Wi-Fi and comfortable seating arrangement. In addition, these trains have ultra-modern features such as retractable steps, zero discharge vacuum bio toilets etc. The design is also aerodynamic unlike the current trains of India.
Railways also upgraded several trains under projects named Utkarsh and Project Swarna to improve passenger comfort. Railways had launched Project Utkrisht in April 2018 to improve the condition of ICF type coaches running in mail or express trains. And by March 2022, the Railways has completed the upgradation of 506 rakes of mail and express trains.
The Railways launched Project Swarna in May 2017, and since then 65 rakes of Rajdhani and Shatabdi trains were upgraded across multiple dimensions, including coach interiors, toilets, onboard cleanliness, staff behaviour, linen etc.
Kavach Anti-Collision Technology
Kavach is an anti-collision technology developed in India to prevent train accidents. This anti-collision technology reduces the margin of error to a margin of error of one in 10,000 years. The Kavach technology is, in more technical terms, known as the Train Collision Avoidance System (TCAS) or Automatic Train Protection System (ATP) system. Its objective is to bring down the number of rail accidents to zero.
The armor uses a network of devices mounted on two trains moving towards each other to avoid collisions. The devices work with the help of radio technology and Global Positioning System (GPS). The system avoids the risk of collision by accurately estimating the course of the two trains at “collision risk” and automatically initiating the braking system.
rising speed
Indian Railways trains are among the slowest trains in the world with an average speed of less than 60 kmph. Vande Bharat Express has changed this perception with a top speed of 180 kmph. While the operating speed does not exceed 130 kmph due to various constraints, the Bhopal-New Delhi Vande Bharat Express clocks 160 kmph in some sections.
On the other hand, the future Vande Bharat Express made of aluminum will have a maximum speed of 220 kmph. Not just the Vande Bharat Express, but improvements in rail lines have meant that all express and superfast trains are capable of touching a maximum speed of around 130 kmph. In fact, the Coromandel Express involved in the Odisha accident was running at a speed of 128 kmph.
100% electrification
In the last nine years, Indian Railways has electrified 37,011 Route Kilometers (RKM) of tracks. Between 1947 and India’s independence in 2014, only 21,413 RKM of railway tracks were electrified. The total length of electrified routes in the Indian Railways network is now 58,424 RKM, which is 90 per cent of the total network. This places Indian Railways at the top of the global league.
modern railway station
Indian Railways is working on the development of railway network across the country. Railways undertook redevelopment of 1,275 stations under the scheme of Amrit Bharat Stations and these will be iconic buildings with futuristic and flexible design. As a part of this development, several stations across India have been selected for modernization under the AMRUT Bharat scheme.
Major railway stations like New Delhi Railway Station will be renovated at a cost of Rs 4,700 crore. Similarly, Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus in Mumbai will also be revamped to make the railway station more modern and updated.
tracking train status
Trains in India have a history of arriving late at their destinations due to weather or technical issues. Indian Railways has introduced a new train tracking system where you can now track train status live. The new diesel locomotives of the Indian Railways are also fitted with GPS devices to monitor their health. The entire system is equipped with a GPS receiver, processor panel, onboard sensors and other components to capture and process data through the GPRS service, which is sent to a central server for further processing.
Vistadome Coach
To attract tourists, the Railways installed state-of-the-art Vistadome coaches on Linke Hofmann Busch (LHB) platforms in various trains. These coaches have several modern features and amenities, which provide panoramic views through wide body side windows as well as transparent sections in the roof, thus enabling the passengers to enjoy the scenic beauty of the places where They travel from
3d technology
Over the years, the dated seating and cabin layout have taken away the ‘fun’ of train travel. Trains are now designed using 3D technology to meet international safety and comfort standards (Make in India Printer). This enables manufacturers to incorporate essential information (such as components, sub-systems, and more) into the virtual world, correct errors, and design coaches that meet modern passenger needs such as spacious standing areas. , comfortable seats and exotic cabin styling.