Sealdah division of Eastern Railway launches pilot project of monitoring system to ensure safety of shunt men

Sealdah Railway pioneers remote monitoring system for shunting workers' safety, aiming to prevent accidents and enhance operational efficiency.

Sealdah division of Eastern Railway has launched the pilot project of a unique remote monitoring system to ensure the safety of shunting workers. The work for the project started two months ago. This comes amidst concerns about the safety of shunting workers after a worker was crushed to death as he was caught between a train engine and a coach during shunting in Bihar in November.

The division has pioneered the remote shunting monitoring system under Akshat Malik, Divisional Operations Manager (DOM) of Sealdah, with the guidance of Deepak Nigam, Divisional Railway Manager (DRM) of Sealdah.

According to railway officials of Sealdah division, “This innovative initiative, christened “FOCUS” (Field Observation for Counselling and Upholding Safety), involves round-the-clock surveillance of shunt men and their activities at ten crucial stations.”

Under this project, new-age cameras, equipped with infrared night vision and talkback capabilities, have been strategically installed to provide real-time footage to the divisional control room. This surveillance system will empower the control room to monitor shunting operations with greater detail, identify potential risks proactively, and intervene swiftly in case of emergencies and avoid tragic incidents like the one in Bihar.

Mr. Malik spoke to The Hindu about the project and said, “We cannot completely depend on CCTV cameras; they do not have an interactive feature and they are mostly used during post-mortem after an incident. Available technologies were not enough to tackle this need. We improvised this project combining three different sets of existing gadgets, technologies, and repurposed it for this particular need.”

Monitoring the new system was another challenge. This was handled by selecting four deserving candidates who had detailed knowledge of safe operations, and they have been dedicated to work in shifts for the control duties. More than 150 other shunt men are also part of this project. Mr. Malik also said, “This is also labour- and cost- effective, because one person can monitor 10 cameras. This monitoring also helps the staff on the ground be on high alert to ensure utmost safety. The project has been on for 2.5 months.”

Railway officials feel that this pilot project will also boost the morale of the shunting workers, who generally work alone on the tracks, and can help bring a sense of security and accountability, encouraging adherence to safety protocols.