Indian railways’ Kavach technology set to enhance safety on western railway

Indian Railways to install Kavach technology in Mumbai for enhanced safety on the rail network. Automatic brakes for overspeeding & collisions.

Mumbai: The Indian Railways is set to install its most advanced technology on signalling, known as Kavach, in Mumbai, starting with the Mumbai Central-Virar route on the Western Railway (WR). Tenders have been issued for the installation of Kavach, an upgraded version of the existing auxiliary warning system that exists on the Mumbai suburban rail network.

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The Kavach system, developed indigenously, is designed to automatically apply brakes in situations of overspeeding or collisions, contributing to enhanced safety on the rail network. “We have called tenders for installing Kavach technology on the Dahanu - Mumbai Central route. This will be installed on the Up and Down Fast corridor and 5-6 lines meant for long-distance trains,” said a senior WR official.

Explaining the same, the authorities said that the fast corridor caters to both local and long-distance trains, while the fifth and sixth lines primarily serve outstation trains. The installation of the completed Automatic Train Protection (ATP) system of Kavach between Mumbai and Ratlam is expected to be concluded by June 2024.

In 2022, the WR awarded three separate contracts for the provision of the Kavach system, covering a total distance of 735 km with 90 locomotives. These contracts include stretches on the Virar-Surat-Vadodara, Vadodara-Ahmedabad, and Vadodara-Ratlam-Nagda sections, with a completion date set for 2024.

Kavach, certified at the highest level of safety integrity, assists Loco Pilots in avoiding Signal Passing At Danger (SPAD), managing overspeeding, and ensuring safe train operations during adverse weather conditions such as dense fog. The system operates on the principle of continuous movement updates using radio communication in Ultra High Frequency. The cost for the provision of Trackside, including Station equipment of Kavach, is approximately ₹50 lakh/km, while the cost for the provision of Kavach equipment on loco is around ₹70 lakh/loco.