Train disasters: electronic sensors needed

  NO one can disagree with the factual details given in the article on the Khanna train disaster (Dec 1). Populist policies followed by each Railway Minister on his own as well as under pressure from fellow politicians create a scarcity of the funds needed for improvement in the overall functioning of the railways. Uneconomical train services and subsidised rail travel are the other two major reasons for the financial crunch.

There is an intensive use of the railway facilities without a matching infrastructure and arrangements for maintenance. It is a fact that there is always a shortage of spares, and the quality is overlooked due to various reasons.

The Khanna-type train disaster can be avoided if electronic sensors are fitted in front of each train engine, to get forewarned of a danger from a safe distance. Such trains run in Vancouver (Canada) without drivers, guards and station masters. Sensing any obstruction on the track, the trains stop automatically at a safe distance.

When will we be able to attain such standards?

H. B. SINGH
Jalandhar

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Slackness in safety measures

MR M. K. Misra’s article, “Khanna train disaster: railways’ poor safety record”, has brought to public notice the various safety measures the railway management takes before putting a train on the track, as also during its run from the originating station to its destination. From the author’s detailed study it appears that adequate safety measures and instructions are there to ensure safe movement of trains. Notwithstanding all this and the organisation that exists, accidents do occur, sometimes of a disastrous nature when there are collisions or a fire incident. Invariably, the disastrous mishaps occur due to human failure – the staff’s failure to carry out the laid-down instructions.

Therefore, it stands to reason that ways and means should be devised to ensure that there are minimum human failures during the journey of a train. There are, of course, a number of devices to handle certain aspects of human failure. This will make the train come to a stop automatically. However, accidents due to human failure cannot be eliminated with the help of these devices alone.

I remember the safety measures that were introduced in the sixties and maintained till the early seventies brought about a marked decline in the accident rate. These included education, effective supervision, the introduction of technical aids and prompt disciplinary action as a deterrent against unsafe practices and incorrect methods of working coupled with the award of shields for consistently good and long records of safety. It is now obvious that the drive and pressure that gave satisfactory results in the past have not been maintained. What was achieved at one time can be achieved again without doubt, and even bettered if there is a will to do so.

It can be said without being alarmist that accidents are just waiting to happen in the case of Indian Railways. Over miles and miles the track is waiting to be renovated. Many bridges are decades’ old. Higher speed, bigger load and greater frequency of trains have accentuated the problem. However, it should be admitted that in a vast network as the railways it is humanly impossible to make it 100 per cent accident-free under the circumstances; the trick is to minimise the chances. Sadly enough, this is not being done!

K. M. VASHISHT
Mansa

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How to prevent mishaps

The Khanna train disaster appears to be the result of human and mechanical failures.

If the driver and the guard of Frontier Mail heading towards Amritsar, had placed their red hand lamps in between the adjacent track on which Sealdah Express was scheduled to pass from the opposite direction, the accident was most likely to be averted, or the impact could have been very little.

The driver of Frontier Mail should not have stopped the train, allowing detached bogies to collide, fall and foul the adjacent railway line.

To prevent such occurrences, here is a suggestion:

Generally, the distance between two consecutive stations is 10 or 12 kilometres. Therefore, all drivers and guards should be provided with cordless phones with the above range, as are possessed by traffic police personnel in a big city. Some specific name or signal code for disastrous alarm may be prescribed. On hearing such an alarm signal, everybody in the reach of that call will stop speaking. Drivers of trains coming from the opposite direction or from the rear will immediately reverse the lever for exceeding speed, and after hearing the message, the driver concerned will try to stop his train within one hundred yards distance at the most.

If this system is introduced, I think many accidents can be avoided in future. It is a simple and cheap method at present when perhaps our railways cannot spend more on the security aspect.

P. S. TANDON
Rajpura

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Honour the villagers

It is really a good announcement (“Hospital in memory of mishap victims”, December 3) that a hospital will be built in memory of the victims of the train disaster which took place near Khanna recently. It is a welcome step taken by the Punjab government.

In the news-item it was stated that one villager, Jaswant Singh, who had found cash and jewellery worth Rs 5.5 lakh at the accident site, had deposited it with the authorities. Indeed, he is worthy of appreciation. We all should learn a lesson of honesty from him. It is a matter of great pleasure that honesty is still alive. He should be honoured by the Punjab government as well as the Centre. Other villagers should also be honoured as they came to the rescue of the victims of the train disaster.

SUNIL KAPOOR
Yamunanagar

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Overhaul HP Cong

This refers to the editorial “Straws in byelection wind” (Dec 1). The victory of BJP candidate in the Baijnath byelection to the Himachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly — the unprecedented price rise and the incumbency factor notwithstanding — comes as a surprise. The fact that the candidate in question emerged victorious with a huge margin of votes makes the election result all the more startling.

Apparently, the Congress tornado, which uprooted the well-entrenched BJP governments in Delhi and Rajasthan seems to have been blocked by the Shivalik Hills on the way, and thus prevented from reaching the foothills of the Dhauladhar range of mountains — the locale of the electoral battle in the state. A quirk of luck for the state unit of the BJP, indeed!

The electoral victory in question is of immense significance for the ruling BJP as it helps give the harried party a workable majority in the state Vidhan Sabha, making it “less prone” to arm-twisting by the volatile coalition partner — the Himachal Vikas Congress. To that extent, the BJP victory may be hailed as a welcome development.

As to why the Congress could not retain its traditional seat — propitious circumstances for the party in general notwithstanding — should occasion deep introspection by the party leadership. The party can ignore the matter only to its general peril. To my mind, a thorough overhauling of the party’s state unit seems imperative to restore health to the faction-ridden unit.

TARA CHAND
Ambota (Una)

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Parliamentarians’ behaviour

AICC President Sonia Gandhi deserves appreciation for advising Congress MPs to refrain from indulging in unruly behaviour in Parliament. According to her, they should convey their viewpoint or register protest by standing up at their respective places instead of rushing into the well of the House.

Congress spokesman Mani Shankar Aiyar’s remarks describing Mr Atal Behari Vajpayee as “laaiq aadmi, naalaiq neta” reportedly did not find favour with her, and he promptly apologised to the Prime Minister.

On the very first day of the current session of the Lok Sabha, members of the Rashtriya Loktantrik Morcha trooped into the well and raised slogans against the government. Despite the Speaker’s repeated appeals to maintain order, they did not sober down and he had to adjourn the House for the day without transacting any business.

Every minute of a Parliament session costs the exchequer Rs 6,700 – Rs 402 lakh per hour. Can a country whose economy is already a shambles afford to waste such a huge amount as a result to agitating members disrupting the proceedings? It is high time the members desist from creating a pandemonium and behave decorously in the House.

BHAGWAN SINGH
Qadian