Kavach Indian product, yet to meet global standards: Hitachi Rail India

New Delhi: The automatic train-protection system known as Kavach is an Indian product that is yet to be proven to meet global standards, a high-ranking official from Hitachi Rail India, an Indian arm of Hitachi Limited, Japan, that offers key railway solutions in India, said in a recent interview with PTI.

The railway ministry maintains that Kavach is an indigenously-designed, developed and manufactured Automatic Train Protection (ATP) system, which is a highly technology-intensive system with the highest order of safety certification.

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Kavach assists the loco pilot in operating trains within specified speed limits by automatic application of brakes in case the loco pilot fails to do it. It also enhances train safety during inclement weather.

Asked about Hitachi's non-participation in the ongoing large-scale installation of the Kavach system across the Indian Railway network, Manoj Kumar Krishnappa, Whole Time Director and Company Representative, Hitachi Rail STS India, appreciated the indigenous automatic train-protection technology.

However, he said Kavach is yet to match the global standards.

"We did not enter the Kavach solutions because it is more of an indigenous requirement for the Indian Railway. I am very happy that there are a lot of Indian companies working on Kavach, and being Hitachi India, we also feel proud that it is an Indian product," Krishnappa said.

"It is not a proven technology to the requirements of the global standards. So we are waiting and watching," he added.

The railway ministry started Kavach installation in 2018-19 and while several rail sections across the country have already been equipped with the system, it is yet to be operationalised. The ministry also claims that Kavach is equivalent to Level II of the European Train Control System (ETCS).

Prior to Kavach, Hitachi Rail STS India implemented the Train Protection and Warning System (TPWS) in India's first semi-high-speed train, Gatimaan Express, launched in 2016.

Asked whether Kavach is better than the TPWS, Krishnappa said, "The TPWS is a much better technology."

He added that the one introduced in India was Level I of the ETCS, but "there is Level II, which is also a much better technology".

Krishnappa was of the opinion that India did not go for the TPWS primarily due to cost factors, among other considerations.

"I would not say only cost, but yes, cost is a major factor in India because any tender is decided on the L1 (lowest price) basis, where technology does not play as big a role as in other countries that give importance to proven or superior technology," he added.

"Having said that, I also believe that India has to be self-sustainable at some point. We have to achieve the vision of the prime minister for 2047. We have to have our own products and our own Indian companies," he added.

According to Krishnappa, Hitachi Rail STS has been present in India for the last 27 years and has introduced several advanced technologies, including electronic interlocking, auto block signalling and the centralised traffic control (CTC) on the Indian Railway network.

He highlighted some of the company's recent achievements, such as providing communication and signalling services on the historic Katra-Srinagar rail route, under-river metro operations in Kolkata, India's first monorail in Mumbai, among others.

"Today, 1,300-odd stations have been commissioned with our own electronic interlocking system," Krishnappa said, adding that the Chennai Metro is one of the company’s largest ongoing projects in terms of alignments as it has about 120 km of driverless, communication-based train-control system.

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