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A plea has been filed in the Supreme Court, urging the establishment of an expert commission led by a retired judge of the apex court to investigate the triple train accident in Odisha. The devastating Balasore train accident involved two passenger trains and a goods carriage, resulting in the loss of 275 lives and leaving over 1,000 people injured.
The Public Interest Litigation (PIL), filed by advocate Vishal Tiwari, calls for the immediate formation of an expert commission comprising technical members to assess and evaluate the current risk and safety measures in the railway system. The plea emphasises the need for the panel to submit its findings to the court. Referring to the Odisha train accident, the PIL highlights the recurring train collisions and derailments in India, which have caused significant suffering in terms of fatalities and permanent injuries. It criticises the authorities for their slow response in implementing safety measures to prevent such accidents.
The plea said, "It needs to be mentioned with greater concern and emphasis that India from the last few decades has seen a series of train collisions and derailments causing severe sufferance to people of our country in the form of deaths and injuries of permanent nature. Time and again, the respondent authorities have been slow to provide redress in developing a safety enforcement mechanism against such collisions and accidents."
The plea emphasises that the practical implementation of essential safety mechanisms, such as the KAVACH Automatic Train Protection System, remains incomplete across the country. It raises concerns about the lack of installation of the Kavach system on the affected routes. The plea underlines the necessity of ensuring basic safety measures, particularly with the large number of passengers who travel by train daily. It argues for strict judicial intervention to safeguard public safety and uphold the paramount importance of preserving human life.
The plea urges the Supreme Court to direct the government to issue guidelines and directives for the immediate implementation of the Automatic Train Protection (ATP) system, known as the KAVACH Protection System, in the Indian railways. This measure is deemed crucial to ensure the safety of the public.
