Odisha train crash: Change in electronic interlocking led to triple train crash in Balasore, says rail minister Ashwini Vaishnaw

Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw after visiting the accident site in Odisha’s Balasore where a triple train crash took place killing 288 and injuring more than 1100 said on June 4 that the root cause of the accident has been identified.

The minister said the inquiry into the train accident has been completed and rail safety commissioner will submit the report at the earliest.

The minister further stated that the commissioner of railway safety has investigated the matter and the report is awaited. But the root cause of the accident has been identified and the people responsible behind the mishap. “The accident happened due to a change in electronic interlocking. Right now our focus is on restoration”, added the minister.

The electronic interlocking (EI) system is a microprocessor-based interlocking equipment to read the yard and panel inputs; process them in a fail-safe manner as per the selection table and generate the required output. This system is the alternative to the conventional Relay Interlocking system (PI & RPI), the ministry says.

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