The Ministry of Railways has given approval for the installation of Kavach, India’s indigenous Automatic Train Protection (ATP) system, across 443 route kilometres in West Bengal. The project is estimated to cost Rs 223.83 crore and will cover sections that are currently not equipped with the safety system.
This decision takes Eastern Railway closer to comprehensive adoption of Kavach on its network, and strengthens the government’s broader push to improve operational safety through Make in India technology. Kavach is designed to prevent train collisions by automatically applying brakes in situations such as signal overshooting or excessive speed.
The sanctioned work will extend safety coverage over the remaining uncovered stretches and ensure more uniform protection across busy rail corridors in the region.
Eastern Railway announced the development as a key step toward enhancing passenger and operational security. The project targets 15 critical sections, including:
- Howrah–Santragachi
- Liluah–Belur Math
- Tarakeswar–Goghat
- Maynapur–Bishnupur
- Rampurhat–Dumka
- Azimganj–Murshidabad
- Lakshmikantapur–Namkhana
- Kankurgachhi–Ballygunge
- Kalyani–Kalyani Simanta
- Krishnanagar Junction–Amghata
- Krishnanagar City–Lalgola
- Murshidabad–Azimganj
- Asansol–Burnpur
- Barachak–Hirapur
- Bakhtar Nagar–Andal
The sanctioned work is part of a broader national programme that focuses on expanding the deployment of Kavach across the Indian Railways network. Titled “Provision of Kavach with communication backbone of Long-Term Evolution (LTE) on balance routes of Indian Railways (Umbrella Work 2024-25)”, the project has been included in the Works, Machinery & Rolling Stock Programme, commonly known as the Pink Book, for 2024-25.
The umbrella project has received an overall approval of Rs 27,693 crore, which shows the scale of investment being made to standardise train protection systems across the country. Within this framework, Eastern Railway has received a sum of Rs 896 crore.
This structured approach allows Indian Railways to roll out the safety system systematically, while ensuring that funding and implementation remain aligned with long-term network safety goals.
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