Indian Railways has taken a significant step towards enhancing passenger safety by implementing the ‘Kavach’ automatic train protection system on the 105-kilometer stretch between Bhagalpur and Howrah. This advanced technology aims to ensure safer train operations and reduce the risk of accidents for thousands of daily commuters.
Enhanced Safety for Commuters
Approximately 50,000 passengers travel between Bhagalpur and Howrah every month. Their journey will now be significantly safer due to the Kavach system. This system assists locomotive pilots in adhering to speed limits and automatically applies brakes if the driver fails to control the train’s speed. Five trains operate on this route, including the Vande Bharat Express, all benefiting from this upgrade. The Eastern Railway has also equipped the Howrah-Bardhaman section with the advanced Kavach model 4.0.
Kavach System: An Indigenous Solution
Kavach is a complex, indigenously designed, developed, and manufactured Automatic Train Protection System. It integrates various components such as loco Kavach, station Kavach, telecommunication towers, and RFID tags along the track length. Following the Coromandel Express accident near Balasore, Eastern Railway intensified its focus on safety enhancements. The 105 km stretch in Eastern Railway is the largest implementation after the Mathura-Nagda (549 km) section in Rajasthan.
Operational Efficiency Boost in Dhoni-Tekani Section
In a related development, the Intermediate Block Halt (IBH) system has been installed at Sanjha Ghat Halt between Dhoni and Tekani stations. This new signaling arrangement divides the railway section into smaller blocks, allowing for the safe operation of two trains simultaneously on a single line. This will improve train speed, line capacity, and time management. Officials confirmed that the system became operational after commissioning on Thursday.
Impact on Major Rail Routes
Trains like the Jaynagar-Howrah Express, which passes through Kahalgaon, Sahibganj, and Bardhaman, along with Kaviguru and Vande Bharat Express, will benefit from this safety upgrade. Passenger data up to November 24 indicates that 28,138 passengers traveled on Jamalpur-Howrah Express, 3,933 on Kaviguru Express, and 10,357 on Vande Bharat Express from Bhagalpur to Howrah. Approximately 7,600 additional passengers traveled on Jaynagar-Howrah Express during the same period.
