Railway ministry allocates Rs. 1,112.57 cr for protection system ‘Kavach’ in 2024-25
Kavach is an indigenously developed ATP system that is highly technology-intensive and requires the highest level of safety certification.
Union minister Ashwini Vaishnaw announced on Wednesday that the Railway Ministry has allocated ₹1,112.57 crore to install the Automatic Train Protection (ATP) system, Kavach, for the financial year 2024-25.
In response to queries from DMK MPs Kanimozhi Karunanidhi and Rani Srikumar in the Lok Sabha regarding the funds allocated and utilised for the installation of the Kavach system, Vaishnaw said, “The funds utilised on Kavach works so far amount to ₹1,216.77 crore. The allocation of funds for 2024-25 is ₹1,112.57 crore.”
Kavach is an indigenously developed ATP system that is highly technology-intensive and requires the highest level of safety certification.
What did Vaishnaw say about Kavach?
According to PTI, in a written reply to the Lok Sabha, the railway minister said, “Kavach aids the loco pilot in train running within specified speed limits by automatically applying brakes in case the Loco Pilot fails to do so and also helps the train run safely during inclement weather.”
He noted that implementing Kavach involves various activities, including installing Station Kavach at every station, placing RFID tags along the entire track length, erecting Telecom Towers throughout the section, laying optical fibre cables along the track, and providing Loco Kavach on each locomotive running on Indian Railways.
The minister said Kavach has been deployed on 1,465 route km and 144 locomotives on the South Central Railway.
Updating on the Kavach installation progress on the Delhi-Mumbai and Delhi-Howrah corridors (about 3,000 route km), Vaishnaw said that optical fibre cable had been laid on 4,275 km, and 364 telecom towers have been installed.
He added that Kavach equipment had been installed at 285 stations, on 319 locomotives, and across 1,384 km of rail track.
Vaishnaw mentioned that Indian Railways has also prepared a Detailed Project Report (DPR) and Detailed Estimate for another 6,000 route km and that on July 16, 2024, Kavach 4.0 specification was approved by RDSO.
What is Kavach?
- The anti-collision Kavach system is an Automatic Train Protection (ATP) system developed in India by the Research Design and Standards Organisation (RDSO) and other Indian firms.
- Its main function is to control the train's speed if the driver fails to apply the brakes on time.
- Kavach helps locomotive drivers identify danger signals on the tracks and operate trains in low-visibility areas.
- The system relies on RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) tags placed on the tracks and station yards to locate trains and determine their directions.
- When activated on a specific route, all trains within a 5 km radius are halted to allow the train on the adjacent track to pass safely.
- Kavach enhances the accuracy of reading danger signals through the On Board Display of Signal Aspect (OBDSA).