The Hindu : National : Pre-warning system in place on Konkan rail route

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Jun 06, 2004

National

National

Pre-warning system in place on Konkan rail route

By Anil Sastry

PANAJI, JUNE 5. The Konkan Railway Corporation Ltd. (KRCL) has taken measures to meet the monsoon challenges on its route that passes through Maharashtra, Goa and Karnataka. It has spent around Rs. 60 crores on executing the safety works. It has installed a pre-warning system, using a knowledge embedded device, an official release said.

While treating the lateritic slopes, the KRCL has redefined the laid-down engineering standards of the Railways - flattening the slopes and treating them like soil. The safety works include fixing high-strength and medium-strength boulder nets over an area of 4.3-lakh sq.m. Installed in 179 deep soil cuttings, about 19,000 inclinometers — developed by the KRCL — will help detect even the minute variations in the slopes and trigger a relay to activate the modified `Raksha Dhaga' boxes and the Accident Control Device (ACD) mounted on a tower nearby. The flashing red lights and the hooters on the boxes will warn the patrolman even before a cutting fails. Further, the ACD warns an approaching train 2 km ahead and brings it to a halt using the ACD on the locomotive.

Works, including the flattening of the vulnerable slopes and provision of berms, have been executed. About 40 km of the total length of 84 km of tunnels have been made safe with shotcreting and rock-bolting. Out of the more than 200 deep cuttings, safety works on more than 150 deep cuttings are over. As many as 1.76 lakh sand bag buffers have been placed up to a length of 10-15 metres at each tunnel portal.

The KRCL has also provided mobile phones to all train drivers and stationmasters. It has entered into a memorandum of understanding with Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd. to provide CellOne coverage on the entire route. So far, 40 stations and about 300 km have been covered.

Halts extended

In view of public demand, the KRCL has decided to extend the halts of the following trains up to June 30 on an experimental basis.

The halts which have been extended are: Mumbai-Madgaon Mandovi Express at Rajapur Road; Hapa-Thiruvananthapuram Express at Kumta, Honnavar, Bhatkal, Udupi, and Mulki; Gandhidham-Nagarcoil Express at Karwar, Bhatkal, Kundapura, Mulki; Okha-Ernakulam Express at Gokarna Road, Kumta, Kundapura, Mulki, and Suratkal; Jaipur-Ernakulam Marusagar Express at Kumta, Honnavar, Kundapura, and Mulki; and Pune-Ernakulam Poorna Express at Murudeswar, Bhatkal and Mulki.

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