New Delhi: The number of fog safety devices in Indian Railways to prevent accidents and to reduce delays in the running of trains during the winter season has increased 288 times from 90 in 2014 to 25,939 in 2025. Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw informed the Parliament on Friday.
In a written reply to a question in the Rajya Sabha, the minister said that 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., which helps to prevent accidents.
The minister said that to improve safety in train operations, several measures have been taken by Indian Railways. As a consequence of various safety measures taken over the years, there has been a steep decline in the number of accidents. Consequential Train Accidents have reduced from 135 in 2014-15 to 31 in 2024-25.
Vaishnaw highlighted various safety measures taken by the Indian Railways to enhance safety in train operations. He said that the budgetary outlay for safety-related activities had been enhanced nearly 3-fold from Rs 39,463 crore in 2014-15 to over Rs 1.16 lakh crore in 2025-26 in order to reduce the risk of accidents on the rail network.
The minister further stated that the safety and security of passengers is accorded high priority on Indian Railways. Any unusual incident is thoroughly investigated by the railway administration. Wherever any reason other than a technical reason is suspected, the help of the state police is taken. In some cases, the guidance of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the National Investigation Agency (NIA) is also sought. However, the primary means of investigation is through the state police. This is in line with the constitutional arrangements under which the investigation of criminal activity, maintenance of law and order, and security of railway infrastructure, i.e. tracks, bridges, tunnels, etc., is the responsibility of the state government.
In all incidents of sabotage/tampering with railway tracks reported in 2023 and 2024, cases have been registered by the police/government railway police (GRP) of states and other law enforcement agencies, followed by investigation, arrest of offenders and their prosecution.
Frequent patrolling of identified black spots and vulnerable sections is being jointly done by railwaymen, the Railway Protection Force (RPF), the GRP, & civil police.
Special teams are formed to patrol high-risk areas, vulnerable sections and share intelligence to mitigate threats effectively.
Regular drives are conducted to remove material lying near the railway tracks, which can potentially be used by miscreants for obstruction by putting those materials on the railway track.
The people living near the railway track are being sensitised about the consequences of putting foreign material on the track, removing rail components, etc. and are requested to keep watch and report any suspected activity immediately.
Besides, close liaison is actively made by the RPF with the state police/GRP authorities at all levels to control crime, registration of cases, their investigation and maintenance of law & order in railway premises as well as on running trains with focus on sabotage incidents, sharing of intelligence. Effective steps are being undertaken to prevent such incidents. In addition to the above, specialised agencies such as the NIA and the CBI are also involved as per the scenario.
Central & state intelligence agencies, intelligence units of the RPF are also regularly sensitised and instructed to collect intelligence and take necessary action in coordination with police authorities for the detection and prevention of sabotage attempts, he added.
(IANS)
