Only 121 locomotives in the country are safeguarded by the KAVACH protection system, and the expenditure made on installing KAVACH is 350 crores revealed in Railway Minister’s written response to a question posed by CPI MP Binoy Viswam in Rajya Sabha. In response to a parliamentary question raised by CPI MP Binoy Viswam, the Union Minister of Railways, Shri Ashwini Vaishnaw in a written reply responded that only 121 locomotives have KAVACH, the anti-collision system in place. India has total of 13,215 locomotives in usage. After the triple train collision tragedy in Odisha, which took the lives of around 300 which could have been avoided had KAVACH been in place. This answer reveals that not even 0.01 percent of the trains have KAVACH installed. The reply given by the Hon’ble Minister also mentioned that 3 companies are involved in the process and 350 crores have been spent till date. The CPI Parliamentary Leader, on the answer given by Hon’ble Minister said, “The criminal negligence of the government has been exposed. Despite spending 350 crores, not even 0.01% locomotives have KAVACH installed. I am also certain these 121 trains are not that of the ordinary citizen, but of the rich. Government has the duty to ensure safety of all, but they have miserably failed.”
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