NEWS

Kavach, an indigenously developed Automatic Train Protection System showcased on South Central Railway Friday, is earmarked for aggressive rollout on 2,000 km in 2022-23, according the Budget proposals

WHAT IS KAVACH?

• India’s very own automatic protection system
• In development since 2012
• Name – Train Collision Avoidance System (TCAS), which got rechristened to Kavach or “armour”.

WHAT

• It is a set of electronic devices and Radio Frequency Identification devices
• Installed in locomotives, in the signalling system as well the tracks, that talk to each other using ultra high radio frequencies to control the brakes of trains and also alert drivers
• All based on the logic programmed into them
• By continuously refreshing the movement information of a train, it is able to send out triggers when a loco pilot jumps signal, called Signal Passed at Danger (SPAD), a grave offence in railway operations with respect to safety, and the key to accidents like collision
• Devices also continuously relay the signals ahead to the locomotive, making it useful for loco pilots in low visibility, especially during dense fog