New Delhi [India] October 16 : Indian Railways is strengthening its focus on data safety and cybersecurity alongside technological innovation to ensure operational safety and efficiency, said Hari Shankar Verma, Director General-Safety, Railway Board.
On the side lines of 16th International Railway Equipment Exhibition in New Delhi, Verma toldthat "Railway is a very protected organization, and we always ensure that data provided by the government should not be misused,"
He added "When you go to the PRS, you put some data, and you know that around the world, people are tabling with us. So we are having a lot of data."
The Centre for Railway Information Systems (CRIS) acts as the nodal agency managing this vast digital infrastructure of Railways passengers which they use while booking tickets.
"Several companies are doing this, and our nodal agency is CRIS. Every Indian should feel proud that computerisation started effectively with the railways when the computer ticket was printed 38 years back. Think about making a reservation without a computer; you can't think. That is the technological and digital footprint of India."
Talking on the centrality of safety and technology in railway operations, Verma said, "Every second we have to think about safety in railways. So intervention of technology in safety and train running is very important."
He said that discussions at the event revolved around "how safety can be improved, how productivity can be improved with safety, and how industry can play part in ensuring safety, because they are all stakeholders in running the railways."
Verma also said the domestic industry should focus more on research and development sector rather depending on foreign investments.
"Now the time has come that industries should do the research as developed countries are doing. Rather than purchasing something from outside, we have to develop in-house. Our industry people should develop various products which can provide safety, especially to local pilots, in maintenance activities and tech patrolling."
The time is high when the industry should take risk and innovate, "we should take risk and innovate. We require faster trains that can reach Chennai from Delhi in 12 hours of time," he said.
On artificial intelligence adoption, he said, "AI is being used because it just has come, and its proliferation will require time. Definitely, it is going to help the railway."
Verma highlighted that since 2014, investment in the sector has significantly increased and safety remains the top goal. "Our objective is zero accidents because any loss of life is a stigma on us. You compare the last decade and this decade, you will certainly find that things have improved a lot."
The "Zero Accident Mission" was an initiative announced by the government in the 2016-17 to achieve zero accidents on Indian Railways. Its two main sub-missions were the elimination of all unmanned level crossings and the implementation of the indigenous Train Collision Avoidance System (TCAS), now known as Kavach, which is being implemented on different routes in a phased manner.
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