Commissioner of Railway Safety (CRS) AM Choudhary in his report on the collision between the Coromandel Express and a goods train at Balasore in Odisha on June 2, has said that only railway officers having a certificate of competency in signaling system Only signaling modification should be allowed to work. The report attributed the deadliest accident in three decades to faulty signaling due to two poor repair works, the first and another a few hours before the accident.

Many flaws in the Telecom Department became the reason for the conflict

AM Chowdhary recommended that people undertaking signaling modification work should be required to have a certificate of competency issued after rigorous practical training, as his investigation revealed that a number of lapses in the Signaling and Telecommunication Department lead to collisions. Became the reason A Certificate of Competency must be issued after rigorous practical training to carry out signaling modification works. The CRS report states that both the execution of signaling modification works and the inspection and testing should be carried out by personnel holding this Certificate of Competency.

Important not marked on the circuit board

AM Chowdhary’s inquiry was the main inquiry conducted by the Railways into the accident in which People were killed. The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is conducting a criminal probe into the accident when the Coromandel Express was sent on a line with a stationary goods train, causing it to collided at a speed of km/hr. The CRS investigation linked the accident to poor repair work at 2018 which involved Also included were faults that were corrected but not marked on a critical circuit board.

Information to be given about possible defective conditions

For the foreseeable future, Chowdhury’s report asked the Railways to undertake a campaign to update and complete signaling wiring diagrams, other documents and signaling circuit letters at the site. Also, it added that station masters should be briefed about possible faulty conditions of the Electronic Interlocking (EI) system, which can be detected through indications on the panel. It said, these should also be listed and included with the station working diagram.

Emphasis on following standard practices

As a long term measure, the signaling function/gear is directly connected to the L through OFC (Optical Fiber Communication, which every Zonal Railway has installed at remote locations inside the railway track). should be removed, so that the intermediate relay can be eliminated. Chowdhary’s report stressed upon the authorities to follow standard practices for carrying out signalling-modification work.

Functional testing of existing circuit should be done

It states that before making modifications to the existing signaling circuit, the authorities should carry out functional testing of the existing circuit under modification, to ensure that the actual circuit is as per the completed drawings. It is also learned that ..2022 at BKNM (Bankraniyabaz) station of Kharagpur Division of South Eastern Railway regarding a mismatch between the intended route prescribed by the signal and the actual route taken by the train. Similar incident happened. Due to wrong wiring and cable fault,” the report said.

Suggested deployment of separate team for investigation and testing

It added that the tragedy of 2 June could potentially have been avoided if frequent faults in the local signaling system had been flagged, allowing signaling and track staff to 943 could have come to know about the mistake. Sure, the report is dated June has not yet been accepted by the Railways, which may accept or reject the findings or see re-investigation. The CRS said that any change in the signaling circuit should be done with an approved circuit diagram and in the presence of an official. He also suggested deputation of a separate team for inspection and testing of revised signaling circuits and works before restoration/reconnection of works.

CRSPublished Date

Tue, Jul 4, 2023, 4: 23 PM IST