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Union Budget Plans for Rail Safety
Context:
The upcoming Union Budget for FY26 may allocate over ₹1.25 trillion for rail safety, marking the highest-ever allocation.
- The increase of over 15% in the budget for rail safety could constitute nearly half of the railways’ annual allocation for FY26.
Expenditure Allocation
- A significant portion of the increased budget will be directed toward maintenance of rolling stock, track renewals, and other railway infrastructure to enhance safety.
- For FY25, the Ministry of Railways has budgeted ₹1.08 trillion for safety-related activities, a 7% increase from FY24, which had ₹1.01 trillion allocated for safety.
- In FY23, the expenditure on safety was ₹87,327 crore, which primarily went to maintaining infrastructure like tracks and rolling stock.
Key Areas of Focus:
- Track Renewals: Ensuring that tracks are maintained and renewed to prevent accidents caused by track defects.
- Rolling Stock Maintenance: Upgrading and maintaining locomotives and coaches to enhance safety.
- Signalling Systems: Improving electronic interlocking systems to reduce human error and make signalling more automated and tamper-proof.
- Automatic Train-Protection Systems: Implementing advanced systems like Kavach to prevent collisions and enhance overall safety.
Achievements in Rail Safety:
- Reduction in Accidents: The number of train accidents has decreased dramatically from 135 in 2014-15 to 40 in 2023-24.
- Improved Safety Metrics: The focus on safety measures has led to a 73% improvement in accidents per million train kilometres (APMTKM) over the past decade.
