What happened
Indian Railways has sanctioned a ₹432 crore project to replace relay-based interlocking with Electronic Interlocking on 27 stations/cabins, including 1 intermediate block signalling (IBS) location, on the High Density Network (HDN) and Highly Utilised Network (HUN) routes of the Asansol Division of Eastern Railway.
The sanctioned work covers the replacement of 28 relay-based interlocking installations with computer-based signalling systems. Indian Railways says the upgrade is meant to improve safety, reliability, operational efficiency, fault diagnosis, maintenance, and train handling on one of the busiest sections of the network.
Background and earlier position
Interlocking systems prevent conflicting train movements by linking signals, points, and track circuits. Relay-based interlocking has been widely used in railway signalling, but Indian Railways has been moving towards computer-based signalling as part of wider network modernisation.
The Eastern Railway section mentioned in the release already falls within routes classified as HDN and HUN, where Indian Railways is implementing advanced signalling systems such as Kavach, Automatic Block Signalling (ABS), and Centralised Traffic Control (CTC).
Related current affairs
- Indian Railways approves ₹233 crore for Electronic Interlocking at 21 stations in Samastipur Division
- Indian Railways Approves ₹274 Crore Electronic Interlocking Project Across 20 Locations to Modernise Signalling in Malda Division
- Indian Railways approves ₹170 crore for Kavach 4.0 on remaining 712 Rkm of Moradabad Division
- Railways to Prevent Trespassing: Safety Fencing Provided Along 19,700 km of Railway Tracks
- 4 children among 5 killed as train rams van in Bengal
- SC raps Railways to look into issue of overcrowded trains