Strengthening railway signalling in Jammu & Kashmir and across India; deployment of electronic interlocking, track circuiting, axle counters and Kavach (ATP)

What happened: expansion and commissioning of railway signalling safety systems by the Ministry of Railways

The Ministry of Railways reported large-scale deployment of signalling safety systems across Indian Railways. The announcement covers four technologies: electronic/electronic interlocking (central control of points and signals), complete track circuiting (electrical verification of track occupancy), axle counters for automatic clearance of block sections, and Kavach (Automatic Train Protection, an automatic braking safety system).

What happened: technology-wise status and Jammu & Kashmir deployments

According to the Ministry of Railways, the following deployments were in place as of 30.06.2026 (unless stated otherwise).

1) Electronic interlocking replaced older mechanical signalling with centralized operation of points and signals. The Ministry stated that electronic interlocking was provided at 3954 stations on Indian Railways (out of 6671 stations provided with electrical/electronic interlocking with centralized operation of points and signals as on 30.06.2026). In Jammu & Kashmir, the Ministry stated that electronic interlocking was provided at 11 stations in five districts during the last 5 years: Samba (1), Reasi (4), Ramban (3), Kathua (1), and Jammu (2).

2) Complete track circuiting was provided to enhance safety through electrical verification of track occupancy. The Ministry stated track circuiting was provided at 6671 stations up to 30.06.2026 over Indian Railways. It also stated that 11 stations in the same five Jammu & Kashmir districts (Samba-1, Reasi-4, Ramban-3, Kathua-1, Jammu-2) received track circuiting during the last 5 years.