NEW DELHI: An empty Vande Bharat train with an ineffective braking system was allowed to travel about 463 km between Jharkhand and Uttar Pradesh in October, prompting the South Eastern Railway (SER) zone to order a detailed probe, PTI reported on Sunday. The incident took place on October 24, days before the Kolkata-Sairang Express derailed in Assam on November 11 in what the report described as a case of almost similar negligence.

Source: PTI via Deccan Herald

The empty chair-car rake was to be moved by a freight locomotive from Hatia in Jharkhand to Jhansi in Uttar Pradesh, and its braking system was supposed to be integrated with the goods locomotive hauling it. In its order directing the Divisional Railway Manager (DRM) of Ranchi to investigate, the SER said a brake feel and brake power test was conducted after departure from Hatia, in the Hatia-Ranchi section, and the loco pilot found the brake power 'very poor and ineffective'.

Source: PTI via Deccan Herald

At Ranchi station, the loco pilot submitted a written complaint about the poor brake power to the section controller and the traction loco controller, but the train was permitted to proceed in the same condition. Another loco pilot who took over from Muri station also informed the controllers, specifically reporting that the brakes could not be applied by dropping the brake pipe pressure, according to the November 7 order cited in the reports.

Source: The Indian Witness

It was only at Deen Dayal Upadhyaya (DDU) station in Uttar Pradesh's Chandauli district that staff acted. Officials there inspected the rake and found that the braking systems of all the coaches had been isolated, so the coach brakes were not being applied at all. The train had been operated solely on the locomotive's brakes and regenerative braking for approximately 463 km, the order stated.

Source: PTI via Deccan Herald

"Running a train without adequate brake power is a serious safety concern that may lead to a major accident, endangering the lives of staff and passengers and affecting the safety of railway operations," the railway zone said in the order. The preliminary findings identified the coach and wagon (C&W) staff, the section and traction controllers at the concerned stations, and the train crew that worked the rake from Hatia to DDU as negligent. The C&W staff, responsible for maintaining the train, had failed to physically check whether the brakes were functioning before allowing the rake to depart, and the crew, unfamiliar with the Vande Bharat braking system, also failed to physically check whether the coach brakes were applying, the order noted.

Source: PTI via Deccan Herald

Sources: PTI report published by Deccan Herald (November 15) and The Indian Witness (November 15), with a summary carried by Inshorts citing The Tribune.

Source: Inshorts