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GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
MINISTRY OF RAILWAYS
LOK SABHA
UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 683
TO BE ANSWERED ON 22.07.2026
EXPANSION OF KAVACH IN RAIL ROUTES OF SURGUJA, CHHATTISGARH
†683. SHRI CHINTAMANI MAHARAJ:
Will the Minister of RAILWAYS be pleased to state:
(a) whether the Government is implementing the expansion of the "Kavach"
system in Railways and there is any proposal to include the rail routes
of Surguja, Chhattisgarh under this system in future if so, the details
thereof, phase-wise;
(b) whether effective steps taken/being taken by the Government for the
expansion of modern safety system including "Kavach" on the rail
routes of Surguja, Chhattisgarh in order to strengthen passenger safety
and safe train operations and if so, the details thereof;
(c) whether the Government has formulated any special action plan for the
modernisation of the railway network and strengthening of passenger
amenities the said States and if so, the details thereof?
ANSWER
MINISTER OF RAILWAYS, INFORMATION & BROADCASTING AND
ELECTRONICS & INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
(SHRI ASHWINI VAISHNAW)
(a) to (c):
Safety is accorded the highest priority on Indian Railways. As a
consequence of various safety measures taken over the years, there has
been a steep decline in the number of accidents.
Number of Consequential Train Accidents has reduced as shown in the
table below:-
Year Consequential Accidents
2014-15 135
2025-26 16 (88% lesser)
2026-27 ( upto June 2026) 2
§ Page 1 of 17Another important index showing improvement in safety in train operations
is Consequential Accident Index, the details of which are as under:-
Consequential Accident Index:-
Year Accident Index
2014-15 0.11
2025-26 0.01 ( 91% lesser)
This index measures number of consequential accidents as a ratio of total
running kilometers of all trains.
No. of consequential accidents
Accident Index =
No. of trains X million kilometers run
The various safety measures taken to enhance safety in train operations
are as under:-1. On Indian Railways, the expenditure on Safety related activities has
increased over the years as under:-
Expenditure/Budget on Safety related activities (Rs. in
Year
Cr.)
2013-14 39,200
2022-23 87,336
2023-24 1,01,662
2024-25 1,14,022
2025-26 1,17,693
2026-27 1,20,389
2. Electrical/Electronic Interlocking Systems with centralized operation
of points and signals have been provided at 6,671 stations up to
30.06.2026 to reduce accidents due to human failure.
3. Interlocking of Level Crossing (LC) Gates has been provided at 10,395
Level Crossing Gates up to 30.06.2026 for enhancing safety at LC
Gates.
4. Complete Track Circuiting of stations to enhance safety by verification
of track occupancy by electrical means has been provided at 6,671
stations up to 30.06.2026.
5. Detailed instructions on issues related with safety of Signalling, e.g.
mandatory correspondence check, alteration work protocol,
preparation of completion drawing, etc. have been issued.
6. System of disconnection and reconnection for S&T equipment as per
protocol has been re-emphasized.
7. All locomotives are equipped with Vigilance Control Devices (VCD) to
improve alertness of Loco Pilots.
8. Retro-reflective sigma boards are provided on the mast which is
located two OHE masts prior to the signals in electrified territories to
Page 3 of 17alert the crew about the signal ahead when visibility is low due to
foggy weather.
9. A GPS based Fog Safety Device (FSD) is provided to loco pilots in fog
affected areas which enables loco pilots to know the distance of the
approaching landmarks like signals, level crossing gates, etc.
10. Modern track structure consisting of 60kg, 90 Ultimate Tensile
Strength (UTS) rails, Prestressed Concrete Sleeper (PSC) Normal/Wide
base sleepers with elastic fastening, fan shaped layout turnout on PSC
sleepers, Steel Channel/H-beam Sleepers on girder bridges is used
while carrying out primary track renewals.
11. Mechanisation of track laying activity through use of track machines
like PQRS, TRT, T-28 etc. to reduce human errors.
12. Maximizing supply of 130m/260m long rail panels for increasing
progress of rail renewal and avoiding welding of joints, thereby
improving safety.
13. Ultrasonic Flaw Detection (USFD) testing of rails to detect flaws and
timely removal of defective rails.
14. Laying of longer rails, minimizing the use of Alumino Thermic Welding
and adoption of better welding technology for rails i.e., Flash Butt
Welding.
15. Monitoring of track geometry by OMS (Oscillation Monitoring System)
and TRC (Track Recording Cars).
16. Patrolling of railway tracks to look out for weld/rail fractures.
17. The use of Thick Web Switches and Weldable CMS Crossing in turnout
renewal works.
18. Inspections at regular intervals are carried out to monitor and educate
staff for observance of safe practices.
19. Web based online monitoring system of track assets viz. Track
database and decision support system has been adopted to decide
rationalized maintenance requirement and optimize inputs.
Page 4 of 1720. Detailed instructions on issues related with safety of Track, e.g.
integrated block, corridor block, worksite safety, monsoon
precautions, etc. have been issued.
21. Preventive maintenance of railway assets (Coaches & Wagons) is
undertaken to ensure safe train operations.
22. Replacement of conventional ICF design coaches with LHB design
coaches is being done.
23. All unmanned level crossings (UMLCs) on Broad Gauge (BG) route have
been eliminated by January 2019.
24. Safety of Railway Bridges is ensured through regular inspection of
Bridges. The requirement of repair/rehabilitation of Bridges is taken up
based upon the conditions assessed during these inspections.
25. Indian Railways has displayed Statutory “Fire Notices” for widespread
passenger information in all coaches. Fire posters are provided in
every coach so as to educate and alert passengers regarding various
Do’s and Don’ts to prevent fire. These include messages regarding not
carrying any inflammable material, explosives, prohibition of smoking
inside the coaches, penalties etc.
26. Production Units are providing Fire detection and suppression system
in newly manufactured Power Cars and Pantry Cars, Fire and Smoke
detection system in newly manufactured coaches. Progressive fitment
of the same in existing coaches is also underway by Zonal Railways in
a phased manner.
27. Regular counselling and training of staff is undertaken.
28. Concept of Rolling Block introduced in Indian Railways (Open Lines)
General Rules vide Gazette notification dated 30.11.2023, wherein
work of integrated maintenance/ repair/replacement of assets is
planned up to 52 weeks in advance on rolling basis and executed as
per plan.
Page 5 of 17The details of the Safety related works related to better maintenance
practices, Technological improvements, better infrastructure and rolling
stock etc. undertaken by Railways are tabulated below:-
2004-05 to 2014-15 to 2014-26 Vs.
S.No. Item
2013-14 2025-26 2004-14
Technological Improvements
1. Use of high-quality 57,450 Km 1.63 Lakh Km More than
rails (60 Kg) (Km) 2.8 times
2. Longer Rail Panels 9,917 Km 87,219 Km Nearly 9
(260m) (Km) times
3. Electronic 837 3,691 Stations More than
Interlocking Stations 4 times
(Stations)
4. Fog Pass Safety As on As on 31.03.26: 352 times
Devices (Nos.) 31.03.14: 31,693 Nos.
90 Nos.
5. Thick Web Switches Nil 35,971 Nos.
(Nos.)
Better Maintenance Practices
1. Primary Rail Renewal 32,260 Km 57,583 Km 1.78 times
(Track Km)
2. USFD (Ultra Sonic 79.43 Lakh 2.25 Crore More than
Flaw detection) 2.8 times
Testing of Welds
(Nos.)
3. Weld failures (Nos.) In 2013-14: In 2025-26: 93 %
3,699 Nos. 272 Nos. reduction
4. Rail fractures (Nos.) In 2013-14: In 2025-26: 92%
2,548 Nos. 208 Nos. reduction
Page 6 of 17Better Infrastructure and Rolling Stock
1. New Track KM added 14,985 Km 36,429 Km Almost 2.5
(Track Km) times
2. Flyovers 4,148 Nos. 14,362 Nos. More than
(RoBs)/Underpasses 3 times
(RUBs) (Nos.)
3. Unmanned Level As on As on 31.03.26: Removed
crossings 31.03.14: Nil
(Nos.) on BG 8,948 (All eliminated by
31.01.19)
4. Manufacture of LHB 2,337 Nos. 49,366 More than
Coaches (Nos.) 21 times
Kavach Implementation
1. Kavach is an indigenously developed Automatic Train Protection (ATP)
system. Kavach is a highly technology intensive system, which
requires safety certification of highest order (SIL-4).
2. Kavach aids the Loco Pilot in running of trains within specified speed
limits by automatic application of brakes in case Loco Pilot fails to do
so and also helps the trains to run safely during inclement weather.
3. The first field trials on the passenger trains were started in February
2016. Based on the experience gained and Independent Safety
Assessment of the system by Independent Safety Assessor (ISA), three
firms were approved in 2018-19, for supply of Kavach Ver 3.2.
4. Kavach was adopted as National ATP system in July, 2020.
5. Implementation of Kavach System involves following Key Activities:
Page 7 of 17a. Installation of Station Kavach at each and every station, block
section.
b. Installation of RFID Tags throughout the track length.
c. Installation of telecom Towers throughout the section.
d. Laying of Optical Fibre Cable along the track.
e. Provision of Loco Kavach on each and every Locomotive running on
Indian Railways.
6. Based on deployment of Kavach version 3.2 on 1,465 RKm on South
Central Railway and experience gained, further improvements were
made. Finally, Kavach specification version 4.0 was approved by RDSO
on 16.07.2024.
7. Kavach version 4.0 covers all the major features required for the
diverse railway network. This is a significant milestone in safety for
Indian Railways. Within a short period, IR has developed, tested and
started deploying Automatic Train Protection System.
8. Major improvement in Version 4.0 includes increased Location
Accuracy, Improved Information of Signal Aspects in bigger yards,
Station to Station Kavach interface on OFC and Direct Interface to
existing Electronic Interlocking System. With these improvements,
Kavach Ver.4.0. is planned for large scale deployment over Indian
Railways.
9. After extensive and elaborate trials, Kavach Version 4.0 has been
successfully commissioned on 2,490 Route Kilometres as on 13.07.26,
covering the high density Delhi- Mumbai and Delhi-Howrah routes as
below:
Page 8 of 17SN Section Progress (Route Km)
(1) Delhi-Mumbai route: 1,344 Rkm
i Tilak Bridge - Junction cabin – Palwal – 1,248
Mathura –Nagda –Vadodra-Virar section
(Except Mangalmhudi – Panchpipliya)
ii Vadodara – Ahmedabad section 96
(2) Delhi – Howrah route: 1,146 Rkm
i. Chipyana - Tundla - Kanpur - Subedarganj 563
section
ii. Kanpur – Lucknow section 71
iii. DDU(FOC)-Bhabua Road section 50
iv. Sasaram - Pheser section 43
v. Gaya -Sarmatarn- Nimiaghat section 159
vi. Chota Ambana - Bardhaman – Howrah 260
section
10. In addition, track side Kavach implementation work is being taken up
on 21,937 RKM covering all GQ,GD,HDN and identified sections of
Indian Railways including Anuppur – Boridand – Ambikapur section of
Chhattisgarh. Ambikapur station serves Surguja district also.
11. The total Progress of key items of Kavach on Indian Railway sections
are as under:
SN Item Progress
i Laying of Optical Fibre Cable 11,253 Km
ii Installation of Telecom Towers 1,668 Nos.
iii Station Data Centre 958 station
iv Installation of Track side equipment 7,721 RKm
v Provision of Kavach in Loco 6,045 Nos.
Page 9 of 1712. In addition, work for installation of Kavach in 7,435 Locomotives and
1,200 EMU/MEMU has been taken up.
13. Specialized training programmes on Kavach are being conducted at
centralized training institutes of Indian Railways to impart training to
all concerned officials. By now more than 94,000 technicians,
operators and engineers have been trained on Kavach technology. This
includes about 57,000 Loco Pilots & Assistant Loco Pilots. Courses
have been designed in collaboration with IRISET.
14. The funds utilized on Kavach works so far up to Jun’26 is Rs.3874.9 cr.
The allocation of funds during the year 2026-27 is Rs.2066.24 crore.
Requisite funds are made available as per the progress of works.
Chhattisgarh
Railway Budget:
Budget allocation in the recent years has increased significantly. Budget
allocation for infrastructure projects and safety works, falling fully/partly
in the State of Chhattisgarh is as under:
Period Outlay
2009-2014 ₹311 Cr./year
2026-2027 ₹7,470 Cr. (approx. 24 times)
Track Construction:
The details of commissioning/laying of new track falling fully/partly in the
State of Chhattisgarh is as under:
New Track Average Commissioning of
Period
Commissioned new tracks
2009-14 32 Km 6.4 Km per year
2014-26 1,311 Km 109.29 Km per year (17 times)
Page 10 of 17Projects Sanctioned:
As on 01.04.2026, 36 projects (8 New Lines and 28 Doubling), of total
length of 2,398 Km, costing ₹48,202 crore falling fully/partly in the State
of Chhattisgarh are Sanctioned. The summary is as under:-
Categ No. of Total Length Total Exp upto
ory projects Length Commissioned till March 2026
(in km) March, 2026 (in Km) (Rs. in cr.)
NL 8 887 262 7,535
DL 28 1,512 889 11,298
TOTAL 36 2,398 1,151 18,833
Recently Completed Projects:
Details of some of the recently completed projects falling fully/partly in
the state of Chhattisgarh are as under:
S.No. Name of Project Cost (cr.)
1 Kharsia-Korichhapar New Line (43 Km) 851
2 Bilaspur-Urkura 3rd line (110 Km) 365
3 Salka Road-Khongsara doubling (26 Km) 181
4 Durg-Rajnandgaon Doubling (31 Km) 250
5 Khodri Anuppur Doubling with flyover at 792
Bilaspur (72 Km)
6 Champa-Jharsuguda 3rd Line (152 Km) 1,227
7 Pendra Road –Annupur 3rd Line (50 Km) 394
8 Raipur - Titlagarh Doubling (203 Km) 1,171
9 Dallirajahra-Rowghat (95 Km) 1,628
Ongoing Projects:
Some of the major projects falling fully/partly in the State of Chhattisgarh
which have been taken up are as under:
Page 11 of 17S.N Name of Project Cost (cr.)
1 Kharsia-Dharamjaygarh New Line (122 Km) 3,407
2 Gevra Road-Pendra Road New Line (135 3,724
Km)
3 Dharamjaigarh-Korba New Line (63 Km) 1,686
4 Chirimiri-Nagpur Halt New Line (17 Km) 670
5 Sardega-Bhalumunda New Line (37 Km) 1,282
6 Kharsia - Parmalkasa 5th and 6th line (278 7,854
Km)
7 Rowghat-Jagdalpur New Line (140 Km) 3,513
8 Kirandul-Jadgalpur Doubling (150 km) 1,780
9 Jagdalpur-Koraput Doubling (107 Km) 1,547
10 Jharsuguda-Bilaspur -4th line (206 Km) 2,596
11 Gevra Rd-Pendra Rd Doubling (135 Km) 3,475
12 Rajnandgaon-Nagpur 3rd line (228 Km) 3,545
13 Raipur-Dhamtari & Abhanpur-Rajim gauge 3,250
conversion (67.20 km)
14 4th line between of Durg-Rajnandgaon (31 464
Km)
15 Gondia-Dongargarh 4th line (84 Km) 2,223
16 Baikunth- Urkura 4th line (26 Km) 426
17 Champa-Korba 3rd Line (42 Km) 755
Rail Connectivity to Surguja district:
Surguja district is presently served by Ambikapur railway station
which is a terminal station on Anuppur – Ambikapur Line. To improve the
rail connectivity of Ambikapur, the work of Boridand – Surajpur Road (80
Km) Doubling has been sanctioned and works taken up.
To further improve the rail connectivity in Surguja District, the
following Final Location surveys (FLS) have been sanctioned:
Page 12 of 17S.N. FLS Status
1 Ambikapur – Ramanujganj – Field survey works has been
Garwa Road and Ramanujganj- completed and Detailed
Barwadih New Line (262 Km) Project Reports (DPR) has
been prepared
2 Sardega - Pathalgaon - Field survey works has been
Ambikapur new line (218 km) completed and Detailed
Project Reports (DPR) has
been prepared
3 Ambikapur – Surajpur Doubling Survey Sanctioned
(38 Km)
After preparation of DPR, sanctioning of project requires consultation
with various stake-holders including State Governments and necessary
approvals viz. appraisal of NITI Aayog, Ministry of Finance etc. As
sanctioning of projects is a continuous and dynamic process, exact
timelines cannot be fixed.
Amrit Bharat stations:
Ministry of Railways has launched Amrit Bharat Station Scheme for
redevelopment of stations with a long-term approach.
The scheme involves preparation of master plans and their
implementation in phases to improve the stations of Indian Railways.
The master planning, keeping in view the necessity of each station,
includes:
Improvement of access to station and circulating areas
Integration of station with both sides of city
Improvement of station building
Page 13 of 17 Improvement of waiting halls, toilets, sitting arrangement, water
booths
Provision of wider foot over bridge/subway to commensurate with
passenger traffic
Provision of lifts/escalators/ramps
Improvement of platform surface/ provision of platform shelter
Provision of kiosks for local products through schemes like 'One
Station One Product'
Parking development
Amenities for Divyangjans
Better passenger information systems
Provision of air concourse, executive lounges, Multimodal
integration, landscaping, etc.
The scheme also envisages sustainable and environment friendly
solutions etc. as per necessity, phasing and feasibility and creation of
city centre at the station in the long term.
So far, 1340 stations have been identified for development under Amrit
Bharat Station Scheme, out of which 32 stations are located in
Chhattisgarh. The names of stations identified for development under
Amrit Bharat Station Scheme in Chhattisgarh are as following:
State No. of Names of Stations
Stations
Chhattisgarh 32 Akaltara, Ambikapur, Baikunthpur Road, Balod,
Baradwar, Belha, Bhanupratappur, Bhatapara,
Bhilai, Bhilai Nagar, Bhilai Power House,
Bilaspur, Champa, Dallirajhara, Dongargarh,
Durg, Hathbandh, Jagdalpur, Janjgir Naila,
Korba, Mahasamund, Mandir Hasaud, Marauda,
Nipania, Pendra Road, Raigarh, Raipur Jn, Raj
Nandgaon, Sarona, Tilda Neora, Urkura,
Uslapur
Page 14 of 17Completed Stations:
Development works at railway stations under Amrit Bharat Station
Scheme in Chhattisgarh have been taken up at a good pace. Details of
stations completed in Chhattisgarh are as under:
State No. of Names of Stations
Stations
Chhattisgarh 10 Ambikapur, Balod, Bhanupratappur,
Bhilai. Champa, Dallirajhara,
Dongargarh, Raj Nandgaon, Sarona,
Urkura
The activities for development at other stations have also been taken up
at good pace and progress of some of the stations is as given below:
Bilaspur station: The foundation works of new North-East side station
building and new South-West side station building have been completed.
The works of superstructure of new North-East side station building,
new South-West side station building, residential quarters, substation
building and service buildings have been taken up.
Akaltara station: The works of improvement of station building,
improvement of circulating area, parking, waiting halls, booking counter,
platform shelters, new toilet, landscaping, installation of CCTV and
signages have been completed. The work of 12 m wide foot over bridge
has been taken up.
Korba station: The works of improvement of station building, waiting
halls, booking counter, improvement of circulating area, parking,
platform shelters, landscaping, installation of CCTV and signages have
been completed. The work of 12 m wide foot over bridge has been taken
up.
Page 15 of 17Jagdalpur station: The works of new station building, 12 m wide foot
over bridge, improvement of platform surface, improvement of
circulating area, toilets, platform shelters and waiting hall have been
completed. The works of lifts, signages and installation of Coach
Indication Boards have been taken up.
Mahasamund station: The structural works of new station building,
improvement of platform surface and platform shelters have been
completed. The finishing works of new station building, improvement of
circulating area and 12 m wide foot over bridge have been taken up.
Further, development / redevelopment / upgradation / modernisation of
stations on Indian Railways is a continuous and ongoing process and
works in this regard are undertaken as per requirement, subject to inter-
se priority and availability of funds. Development / redevelopment /
upgradation I modernisation of a station is carried out based on category
of station/condition/traffic handled etc.
Development / Upgradation of railway stations is a complex in nature
involving safety of passengers & trains and requires various statutory
clearances such as tree cutting, heritage, fire clearance, airport
clearance etc. These stations are in operation since long, so brownfield
work challenges are being faced, such as shifting of utilities (involving
water/sewage lines, optical fibre cables, gas pipelines, power/signal
cables, etc.), infringements, operation of trains without hindering
passenger movement, speed restrictions due to works carried out in
close proximity of the tracks and near to high voltage power lines, etc.
and these factors affect the progress of work and completion time.
Development / upgradation / modernisation of stations including under
Amrit Bharat Station Scheme is generally funded under Plan Head-53
'Customer Amenities'. The details of allocation and expenditure under
Plan Head-53 are maintained Zonal Railway wise and not station-wise or
Page 16 of 17state-wise. Chhattisgarh is covered under the jurisdiction of two railway
zones, namely. South East Central Railway and East Coast Railway. For
these zones, an allocation of Rs. 1,132 crore has been made for the
financial year 2026-27, out of which an expenditure (up to June, 2026) of
Rs. 486 crore has been incurred so far.
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Page 17 of 17