The triple collision near Balasore between Chennai-bound Coromandel Express, Howrah-bound SMVT-Howrah Express and a stationary goods train late evening on June 2 is a truly monstrous tragedy — the worst rail collision in nearly 20 years. The fact that such an incident could recur now — despite a fund in existence for rail safety and efforts at modernisation — is very unsettling. While the number of rail accidents per million square kilometres has fallen over time, it takes just one mega mishap to negate this advance. The inquiry underway should take a systemic view of the June 2 mishap that killed at least 275 people.

On that evening, a speeding Coromandel Express got a green signal to go down the main line, but somehow ended up in the loop line (attached to stations) where a goods train was stationed. Most of its coaches derailed violently in the collision, some onto the second main line where they collided with the train towards Howrah that was hurtling down the track. A probe would hopefully establish why the switch to the loop line given to the goods train was not reversed before the arrival of the express train, and crucially, how this lapse escaped both human or electronic detection.

The first issue here is whether this was a failure of technology per se, or an error of human omission or commission. According to railway insiders, the top brass recently expressed apprehensions over the scope for error in automatic signalling, when a collision in the South Western Railway zone was miraculously averted. The Kavach anti-collision device as a fall-back could make a difference, even if its roll-out is to cost over ₹30,000 crore. This is despite the fact that Kavach may not work in all cases, such as in this accident when there was no time for man or machine to act. The new signalling system can, however, be reviewed.

The second issue pertains to the staff shortage in the Railways; according to a statement by Rail Minister Ashwini Vaishnav in the Rajya Sabha last December, 3.12 lakh non-gazetted posts are vacant all-India, many in the safety category. The situation remains unchanged since the Kakodkar Committee report brought out a decade ago, which flagged this issue. The DP Tripathi report submitted at that time raises safety concerns arising out of the poor working conditions of loco pilots and other staff. The latest CAG report refers to the skills deficit of the contractual workforce as well as poor follow-up training of staff. The CAG has also observed that the Rail Suraksha Sanrakshan Kosh set up in FY2018 with an annual allocation of ₹20,000 crore, of which a fourth was to come from the internal resources of the Railways, is not being fully spent because of a shortfall in funding from the Railways. The quality of the workforce should be raised and critical vacancies filled, amidst the emphasis on capex. Rail safety is paramount in a country where 22 million people travel daily.

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