NEW DELHI: Concerned over spurt in train accidents especially derailments, Indian Railway have decided to frame policy guideline to address the shortcomings of its safety organisations and strengthen the system.
The need for strengthening railway safety organisation on Indian Railways was also raised by the Railway Safety Review Committee which has recommended that safety departments should be made broad based and suitable officers from Traffic, Civil, Mechanical, Signaling and Electrical departments should be posted as safety officers at all levels.
According to A S Upadhyay, Adviser (Safety), Railway Board, with rising incidents of derailments, it is pertinent to understand the efficacy and shortcomings of the safety organization in the zones and strengthen the system.
“One of the important aspects is that a person with right attitude towards safety should be at the helm of affairs in zonal railways,” said Upadhyay.
Railways has sought views of all zonal railways on issues related to structural changes needed to improve the effectiveness of the safety organization and methodology for performance evaluation of safety officers and change among others.
An internal assessment by railways has also found serious flaws in safety audits done by zonal railways. It was found that safety audits are conducted like a routine inspection and system failures and generic shortcomings are being neglected by railways.
Railway Board has now asked General Managers of 17 zonal railways to ensure that safety audits are completed in systematic manner and compliance report signed by Chief Safety Officer (CSO) is submitted to Railway Board.
“Over a period of time the safety audits are now conducted in a routine manner like any other normal inspection. Instead of identifying the system failures and generic shortcomings, the safety audits generally talks of the individual failures,” said Upadhyay.
The concept of the safety audit was started in zonal railways with a view that it will be different from normal inspection as it involves the process (flaws in systems) approach to the items inspected.
Indian Railways has received Rs 1655 crore from the government for the installation of CCTVs at stations and bio-toilets in trains across the country. Under Swachh Bharat Mission, it has received Rs 1155 crore for installing bio-toilets in trains and Rs 500 crore were channeled under Nirbhaya Fund for CCTVS at all major stations for enhancing passenger safety and security.