Dinesh MohanTransportation Research & Injury Prevention

ProgrammeIndian Institute of technology Delhi

Emerging Dimensions of Railway Safety

The present situation

Accidents Factors beyond Railways

control

Accidents equipment failure

Accidents railway staff failure

Other Total

107 1 126 6 234Source : Rajya Sabha Unstarred Question No. 544, dated 28.07.2006

Train Accidents on Indian Railways in India(1960-1961 to 2005-2006)

YearCollision

sDerail-ments

Levelcrossingaccident

s

Fire intrains

Misc. accident

sTotal

1960-61 130 1,415 181 405 - 2,131

2005-06 9 131 75 15 4 234 Source : Ministry of Railways, Govt. of India.

IIT Delhi Apr 19, 2023

Good news, in time and technology management!

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Nature of Accident

2003-2004  

Killed Injured  

Passengers 138 599  

In Train Accidents, Failures of Railway Equipment and Misc. Accidents 84 279  

In Unusual Occurrences- Movement of Exclusive of Train Accidents etc. 54 320  

In Unusual Occurrences on Railway Premises not Connected With the Movement of Railway Vehicles - -  

Railway Employees 77 1017  

In Train Accidents, Failures of Railway Equipment and Misc. Accidents 3 28  

In Unusual Occurrences Caused by Movement of Railway Vehicles Exclusive of Train Accidents etc. 50 151  

In Unusual Occurrences on Railway Premises not Connected With the Movement of Railway Vehicles 24 838  

Other Persons 2,748 2,217  

In Train Accidents, Failures of Railway Equipment and Misc. Accidents 155 159  

In Unusual Occurrences Caused by Movement of Railway Vehicles Exclusive of Train Accidents etc. 2593 2058  

In Unusual Occurrences on Railway Premises not Connected With the Movement of Railway Vehicles - -  

Total 2,963 3,833  

Number of Persons Killed and Injured According to Nature of Railways Accidents

in India

Source : Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, Govt. of India

IIT Delhi Apr 19, 2023

  AGE TOTAL0-

14

15-29 30-44 45-59 >60

Rail-road accidents 70 653 799 547 207 2,276Other railway

accidents 327 4,576 7,058 4,220 1,962 18,143TOTAL 397 5,229 7,857 4,767 2,169 20,419

FATALITIES ASSOCIATED WITH INDIAN RAILWAYS - 2004

Source: National Crime Record Bureau, Ministry of Home Affairs

Ministry of Statistics Total fatalities: 2,963

? ?

IIT Delhi Apr 19, 2023

FATALITIES ASSOCIATED WITH INDIAN RAILWAYS - 2004

Ministry of Home Affairs 20,419 - 2,963 Ministry of Statistics = 17,456

Not investigated since they are not “consequential”

Possible disabled ~ 40,000 – 60,000Serious injury ~ 200,000

Emerging Dimensions of Railway Safety ???

If we reduced “consequential” accidents by 100% we would still have > 17,000 Indians dead annually

Indian constitution guarantees the right to life to all its citizens irrespective of “fault”

Mobility and safety is therefore a fundamental right of any modern citizen

It is the responsibility of institutions to resolve any conflicts between the goals of mobility and safety within their domain of operation

It is crucial for all stakeholders to consider the needs of the most vulnerable

There is a collective responsibility for preventing injuries and deaths due to any cause irrespective of the fault of a railway employee or technology IIT Delhi

Apr 19, 2023

Modern society, railway safety, and rights of citizens

IIT Delhi Apr 19, 2023

The Zero VisionOctober 1997, Road Traffic Safety Bill, Swedish

Parliament

“The scientific basis of the zero vision differs from the usual approach to safety in human-machine systems: designing a system to minimize the number of events that cause injury. Instead, the zero vision is based on the notion of "allowing" these incidents to occur, but at a level of violence that does not threaten life or long-term health”“In the zero vision, the entire transport system must be designed to accommodate the individual who has the worst protection and the lowest tolerance of violence. No event must be allowed to generate a level of violence that is so high that it represents an unacceptable loss of health for that vulnerable individual.”“The responsibility for every death or loss of health in the road transport system rests with the person responsible for the design of that system. This is the ethical basis for realizing the zero vision.”

IIT Delhi Apr 19, 2023

Safety management

:complex and multi-

disciplinary

Source: Safety Principles and Guidance, Office of Rail Regulation, UK.

IIT Delhi Apr 19, 2023

Safety management: complex and multidisciplinary

Source: Claire Dickinson. CROSS-CUTTING TOPIC STRATEGY: HUMAN FACTORS. 2007-08 to 2009-10. Office of Rail Regulation, UK.

IIT Delhi 2005

IIT Delhi 2007

ResultsThe burnt coach

Godhra

Coach

Comparison

coach

IIT Delhi 2007

Damage mapping of the coach

IIT Delhi 2007

Injuries

No serious burn injuries among survivors. Therefore, most escaped before fire serious

All burn injuries on upper part of body

Majority inhalation injuries

No one burnt on lower part of body

All fatal cases (58) completely charred. Fatalities among those who fell unconscious and could not escape

IIT Delhi 2006

Probable escape routes

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Emerging issues

Expertise needed:- Mechanical engineering- Injury epidemiology- Polymer chemistry & materials- Thermodynamics and fire - Forensic science- Crowd mechanics- etc.

Carriage design Emergency response Preservation of evidence Institutional arrangements for safety

research

Institutional arrangements

IIT Delhi Apr 19, 2023

Need for establishment of

- National Railway Safety Research Institute (NRSRI) – multidisciplinary, at least 50% staff permanent with research qualifications

- Endowed chairs in research institutions for independent basic and futuristic research on railway safety in coordination with NRSRI

National Railway Safety Research Institute (NRSRI)

IIT Delhi Apr 19, 2023

Must be independent of investigation and standards enforcement agencies

Safety research – institutional linkages and training

Laws, operations and management

Capacity Building

User behaviour strategies, public awareness education, conferences/workshops

Designing, setting standards and conducting audits

Finally Blaming the victim or one employee is the

most common response to an accident. This cannot result in optimal or scientific solutions

Multidisciplinary / multifactorial approach essential for safety promotion

Everyone has the right to information about safety problems and the level of safety of any component, product, action or service within the rail transport system

Everyone has the right to expect systematic and continuous improvement in safety: any stakeholder within the rail transport system has the obligation to undertake corrective actions following the detection of any safety hazard that can be reduced or removed

IIT Delhi Apr 19, 2023