Weeks Before Odisha Train Accident, Railway Board Flagged 'Shortcuts' By Signalling Staff

The Railway Board pulled up its signalling staffers in April for taking shortcuts in reconnecting signalling equipment after maintenance without conducting thorough point testing.

A letter dated April 3 revealed that five incidents of such negligence were reported from different zones. ''Five incidents on the unsafe side involving points have taken place on various zonal railways,'' the board had said, terming these ''alarming and an issue of serious concern''.

The letter said, ''The signalling gears were reconnected by signal and telecom staffers without proper testing of points after blocks for switch/turnout replacement, wrong wiring during preparatory works, attending signal failures etc.'' ''Such practices reflect dilution of manual and codal provisions. The same is a potential hazard to safety in train operations and needs to be stopped,'' it said, as reported by PTI.

Expressing its dissatisfaction with its signalling department, the Board said these incidents indicate that despite repeated instructions, ''ground situation is not improving and the signalling staffers are continuing to adopt shortcut methods'' for clearing signals without checking correspondence from the site and without proper exchange of disconnection/re-connection memo with operating staff.

''Joint works with engineering staffers, signal maintenance and other repair works requiring disconnection contained in IRSEM should indicate time duration catering provisions for testing signalling gears after completion of engineering works in case of joint activities. The gears should be reconnected only after proper testing to ascertain safe certification of the signalling system,'' it said.

The Railway Board also said several infrastructure works are under progress with stringent targets, and officers and staffers on the field need to be sensitized that the integrity of the signalling system was of utmost importance from a safety point of view. ''These aspects need to be reviewed in weekly safety meetings at divisional and headquarters levels,'' the letter said.

Railway officials and the minister had indicated signal interference as the possible cause of the June 2 accident in Odisha's Balasore.

As many as 288 people lost their lives and over 1,000 were injured in the three train crash on June 2. The crash involved the Bengaluru-Howrah Superfast Express and Shalimar-Chennai Central Coromandel Express, which were carrying around 2,500 passengers, and a goods train.