ReportNo.

PA26 of200809 (Railways)

Chapter2 SignallingandTelecommunicationinIndianRailways Executivesummary Modern signalling is vital for safe andpunctualmovementsof trains.In the Indian Railways the Signalling and Telecommunication Department is responsibleforprovidingmodern,efficientandreliablesignallingsystemsas wellastelecommunicationsystems.Inkeepingwiththis,theCorporateSafety Plan (20032013) of the Railways lays down policy, provision of new technology, asset upgradation and renewal, maintenance, inspection and humanresourcedevelopmentforSignallingandTelecommunicationWing. TheprogressinachievingtheobjectivesoftheCorporateSafetyPlanbetween 200308,planningandexecutionofSignallingandTelecommunicationworks andtheprogressinachievingthetargetsunderSpecialRailwaySafetyFund werereviewedinthisperformanceaudit. Study revealed that none of the zones could achieve the targets in full for provisionofallworkssuchasBlockProvingAxleCounters,TrackCircuiting, Mobile Train Radio Communication, Solid State Interlocking, Route Relay Interlocking, Panel Interlockingetc. The final capitalgrant inallof the last five years except for 200405 was less than the budgetgrantand theactual expenditure even lesser. This indicates that the utilisation of funds could be improvedthroughbetterplanningandmonitoringfromthetop. Therearelargedisparitiesintheperformanceofvariouszonesinachieving theirtargets.WhileSouthCentralRailway,SouthernRailway,SouthWestern Railway, Western Railway, Central Railway, West Central Railway and Northeast Frontier Railway reported 75 per cent or higher achievement of targetsformostworks,otherzonessuchasSouthEastCentralRailway,East CentralRailway,SouthEasternRailwayandNorthCentralRailwayreported lessthan50 percentachievementformostworks.Thisneedsreviewbecausea geographicaldisparityisbeingcreatedwithsome areaslaggingbehind others intheintroductionofnewtechnology. Maintenanceandinspectionweretobethecornerstonesforensuringefficient functioningofequipment.Studyindicatedthattherewasaneedtoreviewthis aspectasinallzonesexceptfive,maintenancescheduleswerenotadheredto and in all zones there was shortfall in inspections. Staff shortage was a commonly cited reason for the above shortfalls. Contrary to the pronouncement of the Corporate Safety Plan, in all 16 zones there are shortagesinsafetycategorystaff. The Corporate Safety Plan required meticulous measurement of the life of equipment and standardisation of equipment. However, the study found that zonal railways were unable to provide standard expected performance parameters for Signalling and Telecommunication equipment in use. Active serviceforeachhourofdowntime,meantimebetweenfailuresandthetime takentorepairvariedvastlyfromzonetozoneandmaketomake.Variationin meantime between failures for the same make of equipment ranged from 36

Chapter2SignallingandTelecommunicationinIndianRailways

thousandsofhourstolakhsofhoursacrosszones.Therearelargevariations in the number of failures for the same make of equipment across zones and alsothetimetakentorepairequipmentrangesfromfewminutestothousands ofhours.Thusthereisaneedtostudytheperformanceofequipment,define the expectedperformanceparameters anddisseminate these to the zones for bettermonitoringoftheperformanceoftheequipment. Atestcheckof642outofthe2,153works/contractsshowedthatonly18could becompletedwithinschedule.Thecommoncausesofdelayswerecivilworks remaining incomplete, changes in scope of works, delay in/ non supply of material,delayinapprovalofplans/drawings,delayinfinalizationoftenders and award of contracts. This indicates a need for better planning and coordinationasalloftheabovementionedcausesarewellwithinthecontrol of the organization. In several of the completed works, completion reports werenotdrawnup. Several works were takenup in contraventionoforders and circulars of the RailwayBoard.Theseincluded,amongothers,worksonrehabilitationoflines identified for gauge conversion the total cost involved in cases detected in auditwasabout52crores. Railtel Corporation of India Ltd was formed in 200001 for exploiting the telecommunicationnetworkoftherailwaysforcommercialpurposes.Apartof the revenues was to be shared with the railways. However, till 200708 the railways have not received any money. While the decision to transfer all communication lines to railways medium has been taken, all the identified circuitscouldnotbeshiftedawayfromBharatSancharNigamLtd.leadingto avoidablepaymentofRs.3.70croresapproximately. In the execution of works under Special Railway Safety Fund, in six zones whilenearlyallthefundshave beenusedupduringtheperiodunderstudythe physical progress of works is under 33 per cent. This indicates that money mayhavebeenspent/advancedtopartieswithoutcorrespondingprogresson the ground. In three zones over Rs.5 crore of Special Railway Safety Funds weredivertedtootherpurposes. Therewasalsoaneedtoworktowardsprovidingsimilarstandardequipment on all sections of a route in all the zones reassess line capacity in routes where line capacity utilisation reported exceeds 140 per cent and to work towardsensuringthatinterblockdistancesareintherangerecommendedby theRailwayBoardinallthezones. Thus the railwaysneed to take stock ofthe achievements of thegoals of the CorporateSafetyPlan.Theplannedmidtermreviewshouldfocusoncharting apathforachievementofgoalsinfullbythecompletionoftheplanperiod. The works need to be closely monitored to avoid delays as the benefits of modern Signalling and Telecommunication can be realized only with the completionofworksontheground. 2.1 Highlights

Final grants were consistently less than the budget grants and the actualexpenditurewasstillless.Thephysicalprogressofwoksdidnot 37

ReportNo.PA26 of200809 (Railways)

match the progress of expenditure. None of the zones could achieve fulltargetsforprovisionofworks. (Paras2.9.1& 2.9.6) Indian Railways could notachieve the target of provisionof modern signallingsuchasSSI,RRI,PI,DataLoggers,BPAC,Trackcircuiting etc.inallthezonesasplannedfortheperiod200308.Therewasidle investmentofRs.132.94croreonprovisionofAntiCollisionDevice (Para 2.9.3.1) There were cases ofdelays in adhering to themaintenance schedules andininspections. (Para 2.9.3.2) Benchmark for meantime between failures and repair was not fixed formonitoringtheefficiencyofmodernsignalling. (Para 2.9.3.3) Due to non provision of similar standard equipments on all the sectionsofaroute,thedesiredresultsofaugmentingthelinecapacity couldnotbeachieved. (Para 2.9.3.4) Ten zones could not achieve the target of reduction in signal failure incidentstobelow7.91asfixedbytheCorporateSafetyPlan. (Para 2.9.3.5) There were many vacancies in safety category staff strength on all zones. (Para 2.9.3.6) IndianRailwaysincurredavoidableexpenditureofRs.9.63croredue to bad planning which led to foreclosure of several projects or changingthescopeofworkmidway. (Para 2.9.4.1) Time overrun and consequential cost overrun occurred in many worksresultinginavoidableextraexpenditureofRs.39.84crore. (Para 2.9.4.2) IndianRailwaysincurredavoidableexpenditureofRs.20.11 croreon improvement of signalling on MG sections where gauge conversion wasplanned. (Para 2.9.4.5) There was delay in transferring the communication channels to Railwaysownchannelstherebyincurringavoidableleasechargesof Rs.3.70crorepayabletoBSNL. (Para 2.9.5.1)

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Chapter2SignallingandTelecommunicationinIndianRailways

Insixzoneswhileutilisation offundsunderSRSFwascloseto100per centormoreinmostoftheyears,thephysicalprogressisbetween40 percent and 17percent. (Paras 2.9.6.1 and2.9.6.2) Items worth Rs.12.17 crore have been lying in stock for more than threeyears. (Para 2.9.7.1) Railways have incurred extra expenditure of Rs.13.32 crore on manufacture of items which are available in the market at cheaper price. (Para 2.9.7.3) 2.2 Gistofrecommendations

Indian Railways should utilise the full allotment of funds economically and productively, while ensuring that the physical targets are also achieved. Indian Railways should explore the cheaper options of providing the modern Signalling systems where line capacity utilisation exceeded 100 per cent prior toundertaking work of additional lines etc. for increasing capacity. Indian Railways needs to make special efforts in provision of modern Signallingsystems,asplanned,forachievingthe resultsofenhancedline capacity,betteroperationalefficiencyandsafermovementoftrains. BenchmarkfortheMTBFandMTTRshouldbefixedsoastomonitorthe efficiency of working of modern Signalling equipments and their maintenance. Indian Railways should aim to provide similar standard of Signalling on all sections of a particular route, instead of scattered provision, so as to achievethedesiredresultofspeedandenhancedlinecapacity etc.onthat particularroute IndianRailwaysneedstodoproperplanningwithafuturisticviewbefore undertaking a work on a route where change of alignment etc. couldbe possible in the near future so as to avoid the expenditure becoming infructuous. 2.3 Introduction The primary requirement of train transportation is to ensure safe, speedy, reliable and punctual movement of passengers and goodsto various parts of thecountry.TheroleoftheSignallingandTelecommunicationDepartmentof the Indian Railways is to provide a modern, efficient and reliable signalling systemforspeedy,smoothandsaferunningoftrains,aswellasan effective and reliable mode of telecommunications. Modern signalling and telecommunication systems also enable reduction in train operation cost by

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ReportNo.PA26 of200809 (Railways)

eliminating the role of human beings in various activities of train operation andimproving capacityutilisationofexistinglines. In keeping with the above, signalling and telecommunications is a key area coveredintheCorporateSafetyPlan(20032013)oftheRailways(CSP).The CSP covers areas ofpolicy, new technology, asset upgradation and renewal, maintenance, inspection and human resource development. Several works havebeenprovidedforundertheCorporateSafetyPlanandSpecialRailway SafetyFund. 2.4 Organisationalstructure

At the Railway Board, the Member (Electrical) heads the Signal and Telecommunication Directorate which is responsible for taking policy decisions. The Member (Electrical), is assisted by an Additional Member (Signal) and anAdditional Member (Telecommunication). At the zones, the ChiefSignalandTelecommunicationEngineer(CSTE)headsthedepartment undertheoverallcontroloftheGeneralManager.TheCSTEisassistedbya Chief Signal Engineer and a Chief Communications Engineer/Chief Telecommunication Engineer. Major construction activities are under the administrativecontrolofCSTE(ConstructionandProjects). 2.5 Scopeof audit

Thisperformanceauditcoverstheperiodfrom200304to200708.Asample of390stations(102onAcategoryroutesand288onotherroutes)and619 works(247workscostingaboveRs.10crore,132workscostingRs.5croreto Rs.10crore,119workscostingRs.2croretoRs.5croreand121workscosting below Rs.2 crore) was selected for the review. All the S&T workshops and storesdepotswerecoveredinthereview. (AnnexureII) 2.6 (i) (ii) (iii) 2.7 Audit objectives ProgressinachievingobjectivesoftheCorporateSafetyPlan (CSP)as plannedfor theperiodupto200708. Planning and execution of Signalling and Telecommunication (S&T) works ProgressinachievingthetargetundertheSRSF Auditcriteriaandmethodology

Theperformanceauditseekstoassess:

The criteria adopted in audit include provisions in the Signal Engineering Manual, General and Subsidiary Rules (GSR), Corporate Safety Plan and recommendations of the Standing Committees on Railways, relevant guidelinesandinstructionsissuedbytheRailwayBoard. The methodologyfollowed was examination of records and analysis of data collected at the Railway Board, offices of the Chief Signal and

40

Chapter2SignallingandTelecommunicationinIndianRailways

TelecommunicationEngineersandDivisionalSignalandTelecommunication Engineersandatselectedstations. 2.8 Acknowledgement

Theauditobjectives,scope,methodologyandfindingswerediscussedbythe Principal Directors of Audit in the zones with the respective General Managers/concerned departmental heads in entry and exit conferences. The inputprovidedonvariousaspectsincludingsuggestionsandsupportprovided byrailwayofficialswhile conductingtheauditisacknowledgedwiththanks. ThecooperationextendedbyRailwayBoardduringthecourseofauditisalso appreciated. The findings presented in this review were discussed with the RailwayBoardinanexitconferenceheldinDecember2008. 2.9 Audit findings

2.9.1 Fundmanagement DetailsoffundsallocationandactualexpenditureinrespectofSignallingand Telecommunication(S&T)byIRfortheperiodfrom200304to200708are givenbelow: (Rs.incrore)

Year Budget Grant Final Grant Actual Saving Expenditure Percentageof Actual expenditure toFinalGrant

200304 200405 200506 200607 200708

649.28 751.37 1255.73 1569.00 1800.56

608.82 790.26 1037.48 1240.92 1375.64

602.86 686.78 988.77 1194.22 1284.96

5.96 103.48 48.71 46.70 90.68

99.02 86.90 95.30 96.24 93.41

Under Capital grant, review of allotment of funds to the zonal railways and actual expenditure incurred by them during the period 200304 to 200708 showed that the final grants were consistently less than the budget grants during the last five years except for200405 and the actual expenditure was stillless.Therewasnonutilisationoffundsalthoughtherewereshortfallsin provision of almost all types of works viz, Block Proving Axle Counters (BPAC),trackcircuiting,MobileTrainRadioCommunication(MTRC),Solid State Interlocking (SSI), Route Relay Interlocking (RRI), Panel Interlocking (PI) and Data Loggers. This highlights poor planning and inefficient utilisation of funds on the part of Zonal Railwaysand lack ofmonitoring at apexlevel. Indian Railways stated (January 2009) that fund utilisation was increasing progressivelyeach year,itwasclosetoabout94percentandthiswasdueto close monitoring and effective planning. They further informed that constraintshavebeenremovedtoutiliseallthefundsincurrentyearandalso infuture.

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ReportNo.PA26 of200809 (Railways)

Recommendation The budget allocation is made with a specific objective of achieving the expectedresults.IRshouldthereforegearuptheirresourcesforutilizingthe full allotment of funds economically and productively. At the same time it shouldalsobeensuredthatthephysicaltargetsarealsoachieved. 2.9.2 Linecapacity utilisation andproposalsforaugmentation Signalling is required for safe movement of trains. Technological improvementsinSignallingsystemsnotonlyensuressafemovementoftrains byminimisinghumaninvolvementbutalsohasthepotentialofensuringbetter pathutilisation.Line capacity statements based on the conventional charting method are being prepared annually by the Operating Department indicating the charted capacity (number of trains that can be run), utilised capacity (numberoftrainsactuallyrun)andpercentageutilisationofthesection.Line capacitydenotesthemaximumnumberoftrainsthatcanberunonanygiven lengthofthetrackduringacalendarday,i.e.,24hours.Workingofsignalling system and block operation are the important elements in deciding line capacity of a section. Capacity enhancement can be achieved with comparatively lesser investment on modern signalling systems as against conventionalmethodslikeprovisionofadditionallines,crossingstationsetc. whichrequirehugeinvestment. Areviewinauditrevealedthat: thereareabout201majorandminorsectionsonIRwheretheutilisation of linecapacityisabove100percent.Ofthese,53and61sectionslieonA andBroutes.Oftheabove,only15sectionsonAcategoryroutesand seven on B category routes have been provided with automatic Signalling. Only in SER all A route sections where line capacity utilisation exceeds 100 per cent have been provided with automatic Signalling. (AnnexureIII) Understatement of line capacity: Board (February 2003) had commented that the charting methodof assessingthe line capacity traditionally followed on Railways tended to underestimate the capacity by 15 to 20 per cent. A reviewinauditrevealedthat: onmorethan200sections,the percentageof utilisation wasmorethan100 percentfortheperiod200506to200708.In53sectionsparticularlythe linecapacityutilisationwasabove140percent,maximumofwhichwas 218percentonaDroutesectionofSWRindicatingthattherewasunder assessmentofcapacity. Inter block distances: Long inter block distances adversely affect section capacityandpreventefficientutilisationofthesection.RailwayBoard,inits guidelines,haddirectedthatconvertedsectionsandnewlines,withanticipated leveloftrafficofmorethan10trainsperday,aretobeprovidedwithblock stationsintherangeof8to9kilometres.Areviewinauditrevealedthat:

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on21Sectionsacross10ZonalRailwaysonRouteAwithlinecapacity ofmorethan35,theinterblockdistanceswere morethan10kilometres. Similarlyon46sectionsonRouteBspreadacross12ZonalRailways,the interblockdistancesrangedfrom10kilometresto18.75kilometres,which wasfarabovetherecommendedinterblockdistances. oncertainsections,theinterblockdistanceswerelessthantwokilometers, resultinginsignaloverlaps. Inboththeseinstances,thesectioncapacityisadverselyaffectedandprevents effectiveutilisation oftheline. Railway Board, during discussions (December 2008), stated that steps were being taken to reduce block lengths, and it was expected that the position wouldimproveconsiderablyinfuture. Providing modern signalling equipment is a cheaper option for augmenting linecapacity.Areviewinauditrevealedthat: twozonalRailways(ECoRandSER)havesanctionedconstructionofthird line on two sections BarangKurda Road and GoilkeraManoharpur respectively.Thetotalestimatedcostforconstructionofthirdlineonthese sectionswasRs.489.76croreasagainsttheapproximatecostofRs.22.67 crore for automatic signalling. The Railways have thus incurred an avoidableexpenditureofRs.467.09crore. (AnnexureIV) in SCR the single line section between KakinadaSamalkot with line capacityof16andutilisationof100percentwasproposedfordoublingat a cost of Rs.78.11 crore on the ground of anticipated growth in traffic. However, it was observed from the working time table of July 2008 that the projected increase in traffic has not been achieved. In this case the possibilityof increasing the capacity to 24 through modernsignallingas perRailwayBoardsguidelines(1993)wasnotexplored. IndianRailwaysstated(January2009)thatprovisionofIBSwasbeingtaken up as a low cost solution for line capacity enhancement and that the recommendationofauditgivenbelowhadbeennoted. Recommendation Before embarking upon the costly capacity enhancement works such as provision of additional lines, crossing stations etc., IR should explore the cheaper options of providing the modern signalling systems where line capacityutilisationexceeds100 percent. 2.9.3 Implementationofthe CorporateSafetyPlanforS&T Indian Railway Corporate Safety Plan (20032013) envisaged safety action plan directed towards continuous reduction in risk to customers, through a series of steps including system reforms, imbibing better safety culture and enhancing asset reliability. It involved continuous rehabilitation and modernization of assets and induction of appropriate technologies. The areas identified for action on the Signalling and Telecommunication front were as follows: 43

ReportNo.PA26 of200809 (Railways)

(i)

layingdownmaintenanceschedulesandtheiradherenceforalltypesof signallinggearsandequipments

(ii) timelyoverhaulofall signallinginstallations (iii) laying down safety tolerance of all Signal and Telecom gears and equipments for MeanTime Between Failures (MTBF) and Mean Time ToRepair(MTTR) (iv) provision of Train Protection and Warning System (TPWS) and Anti CollisionDevice(ACD)asalongtermpolicy (v) layingdownacomprehensivemaintenancepolicyforsignalandtelecom equipments to achieve zero failures of track circuit and axle counter equipment (vi) introduction ofcontinuoustrackcircuitingonidentifiedroutes (vii) introductionof MobileTrain RadioCommunication (MTRC) (viii)introductionof SolidStateof Interlocking (SSI) (ix) provisionof Train ActuatedWarningDevice(TAWD). The progress in some of these areas has been examined and the details are discussedintheparagraphsthatfollow: 2.9.3.1 Provisionofmodernsignallingequipment TheCorporateSafetyPlan(CSP)makeseliminatingcollisionsamissionarea fortheIndianRailwayssoastomovetowardstheultimategoalofacollision free system. Provision of modern signalling equipment is one of the steps towards achieving this goal. Accordingly, the CSP lays major stress on provision of track circuiting on routes in a phased manner, provision of equipment for Block Proving by Axle Counters, introduction of Auxiliary WarningSystem,TPWS,introductionofACD,continuoustrackcircuitingon thegoldenquadrilateralanditsdiagonalsandtrialsofMTRC.Auditreviewed theeffortsofIRforprovisionofmodernsignallinginfrastructure.Theresults arediscussedindetailforsomeoftheequipment: Solid State Interlocking: Duringthe periodunder review, the Railways plannedto install 446 SSI across the zones, however, only 227 couldbe installed, thus on the whole 51 per cent of thetarget was achieved. Five zones(SCR,SR,SWR,SECRandSER)completedmorethan75percent oftheplannedinstallations withSWRputtingin placemoreinstallations than planned. Two zones (ECoR and NR) completed more than 50 per cent but less than 75per cent of their planned installations. Seven zones (WR, NFR, ER, ECR, NCR, CR and WCR) could not complete 50 per centoftheplannedinstallationsinfiveofthese(ER,ECR,CR,WCRand NCR) the achievement was below 25 per cent. Two zones NWR and NER,didnotplananySSIinstallation. (AnnexureV1) Route Relay Interlocking (RRI): During the period under review, the Railways installed only 207 RRI as against 322 RRI planned for installation across the zones. Thus only 64 per cent of the target was 44

Chapter2SignallingandTelecommunicationinIndianRailways

achieved. Five zones (SCR, SR, WR, WCR and NFR) completed more than75percentoftheplannedinstallations,withWRcompleting96per centoftheplannedinstallations.Sixzones(ER,ECoR,NWR,NR,NER andCR)completedmorethan50percentoftheplannedinstallationsand fivezones(SWR,SECR,ECR,SERandNCR)couldnotcomplete50per cent of planned installations. Of these, ECRcould not even complete 25 percentoftheplannedinstallations. (AnnexureV2) Panel Interlocking (PI): 4,225 PIs were planned for installation across thezones,however,only 76 percent,i.e.3191PIscouldbeinstalled. Ten zones (SCR, ER, SR, SWR, WR, NWR, NR, CR, WCR and NFR) completed more than 75 per cent of the targeted installations and four zones(ECoR,NER,ECRandSER)wereabletocompletemorethan50 percentoftheirtargetedinstallations.HoweverSECRandNCRcouldnot evencomplete50 percentoftheirplannedPIinstallations. (AnnexureV3) BlockProvingAxleCounter(BPAC):Duringtheperiodunderreview, the Railways planned to install 3592 BPAC across the zones, however, only 1212couldbeinstalled,anachievementofonly34percent.Nozone wasabletoachievetheirtarget.ExceptforNRwhichachieved73.85per centofitstargetallotherzonescouldnotevenachieve50percentoftheir target. In SR, number of stations planned for providing BPAC was not available,however,35wereprovidedonBandDroutes. (AnnexureV4) Data Loggers:The Railways planned toinstall4598 Data Logger across the zones during the period 200304 to 200708, however, only 2727 couldbeinstalled,thus59percentofthetargetwasachieved.OnlyNFR achieveditstarget. Fourzones(SCR,WR,CRandWCR)achievedover 75percentoftheirtargetandfivezones(SR,SWR,NWR,NERandNR) wereabletoachievebetween50percentand75percentoftheirtargets. The remaining six zones could not achieve even 50 per cent, of these ECoRcouldachieveonly14.45percentofitstargets. (AnnexureV5) Light Emitting Diode Colour Light Signalling (LED CLS):The Railways planned to install18807 LEDCLS across the zonesduring the period under review, however, only 3483 could be installed, an achievementof 19 percent. NFRcompletedallinstallationasplannedand NER completed 78 per cent of planned installations. Three zones (ER, SWR,andNR)completedmorethan50percentbutlessthan75percent ofplannedinstallation.Theremainingeleven zonescouldnotcomplete50 per cent of the planned installation and five of these zones (SR, ECoR, WR, CR and SER) did not complete even 25 per cent of the planned installation. (AnnexureV6) 45

ReportNo.PA26 of200809 (Railways)

Multi Aspect Colour Light Signalling (MACLS): The Railways had plannedtoinstall5248MACLSacrossthezonesduringtheperiod2003 04to200708,however,only4648couldbeinstalled.Thus89percentof the target could be achieved. NFR completed all installation and SCR completed 98 per cent of planned installation. The other zones which completedninetypercentormoreoftheplannedinstallationwereSWR (90per cent), CR (94 per cent) and SER (95 per cent). In addition nine zones(ER,SR,ECoR,WR,SECR,NR,ECR,WCRandNCR)completed more than 75 per cent of the planned installations and NWR completed morethan50 percentofplannedinstallations.InNERthoughnoMACLS installationwasplanned,184wereinstalled. (AnnexureV7) Analysisoftheachievementsofthezonesshowsthatnoneofthezones haveachievedtheirtargetsforallthesevenitems.Fourzones(SECR, ECR, SER and NCR) have not managed to achieve 50 per cent of their targets for four or more of the items. The zones that report higher achievements (more than 75 per cent for three or more items) are SCR, SR,SWR,WR,CR,WCRandNFR. Thismixedtrendacrossthezones indicatesthatinpartsofthecountryservedbySECR,ECR,SERand NCR, the benefits of modern technology are not percolating fast enough creatingageographical disparity across the states/zones.The under achievement was on account of the fact that a number of works plannedduringtheperiodunderreviewandearlierhadnotbeentakenup, were delayed, had been abandoned or were frozen. As these works remainedincomplete,theexpectedS&Tinfrastructurecouldnotcomeup. Track Circuiting: Track circuiting is one of the most important safety aids provided at the station for preventing collisions in station area. The CSP proposed to cover track circuiting on all main BG routes having passenger traffic by March 2008. In all, 5307 locations were to be providedwithtrackcircuitingbyMarch2007.However,areviewinaudit revealedthat: o therewereshortfallsinitemsoftrackcircuiting.Trackcircuitingin respect ofFouling Mark to Fouling Mark was completedon 5037 outof 5233locations,anachievementof 96percent. o in SCR, the target oftrack circuiting was achieved in respect of four out of six items and in remaining two items 94 per cent and 91 per centofthetargetwasachieved. o intheremainingfifteenzones,theachievementrangedbetween 60per cent(inNWR FoulingMarktoBSLSt.)and99percent(SWR FoulingMarktoFoulingMark). (AnnexureV8) Installation of Anti Collision Device (ACD): The Konkan Railway CorporationLtd.(KRCL)developedtheACDtopreventcollisions.When theCSPwasbeingformulated,ACDhadbeensanctioned onabout3500 route kilometers on Southern, South Central, South Western, Northeast Frontier and Northern Railways. ACD surveys had also been sanctioned 46

Chapter2SignallingandTelecommunicationinIndianRailways

foranother 10000 routekilometers. The CSP aimed at further extending ACDonentireBGsectionduringtheplanperiodonpriority. ItwasobservedthatsurveyswereconductedinSCRandSRin2003and 2004respectivelyatatotalcostofRs.2.77crore,butnofurtherworkhas been taken up. In NFR, provision of ACD was sanctioned in 2004 atan estimated cost of Rs.65.70 crore which was later revised to Rs.225.26 crore.NFRhasincurredanaccruedliabilityofRs.130.17croreasofMay 2008,of which Rs.92.22 crore has been paid. The performance of ACDs installed is not satisfactory and these have not as yet been cleared by RDSOforNFR. Indian Railways stated (January 2008) that ACD had been successfully commissionedontrialbasisonNFRandwasdueforinstallationonthree otherRailwayswithintwoyears. However,inviewoftheauditfindingthattheACDinstalledinNFRwas notfunctioningsatisfactorily,the workingoftheACDanditsutilityacross theIndianRailwaysmayneedareview. (AnnexureV9) Mobile Train Radio Communication (MTRC): The CSP recognizes thatMTRCsystem hasanintrinsicpotentialof enhancingthe safetyand security in train operations, besides being a valuable aid in providing reliableandsecurecommunicationtoallthoseengagedindifferentfacets of railway operations and maintenance functions. The CSP seeks to introducetheMTRCasoneofthenewtechnologiesforenhancingsafety, on test basis. The Railway Safety Review Committee 1998 (RSRC), recommended that a reliable train radio communication facility between Driver,Guard,StationMaster,LevelCrossinggateandapproachingtrains shouldbeprovidedasafirststepwithin threeyearsonAandCroutesand inanotherthree yearsonBroutes.IRacceptedtherecommendationsand agreedtogiveaveryhighprioritytothisitem.Areviewinauditrevealed that: o in ten zonal Railways (SCR, SR, SWR, ECoR, NWR, WR, SECR, NER,SERandWCR)noworkforprovisionofMTRChasbeentaken upsofar. o inthreezones(NR,ECRandNFR),thoughthe workwassanctioned waybackin200102,thesamecouldnotbecommissionedsofardue tovariousreasons. o inER,oneworkonHowrahPradhankhuntasection(256km)hasbeen completed, o in CR, the MTRC system is working satisfactorily on 52 route kilometersofMumbaisuburbansectionsinceJanuary2007. o inNCR,theworkisinprogress. (AnnexureVI) Indian Railways stated (January 2009) that as MTRC was new technology, Railwaystooktimetoadoptit.Presentlyworkwason3400routekilometers forprovisionofMTRCandthetechnologyhasbeenstandardisedbyRDSO. 47

ReportNo.PA26 of200809 (Railways)

While the Railways have embarked on introducing MTRC on a large scale moreprogressisneededbeforethegoalssetin1998canbeachieved,andthe ongoingworksneedtobemonitoredclosely. Indian Railways (January 2009) further stated that increased emphasis was beinglaidonprovisionofmodernsignallingsystemasenvisagedinCSP.The progress for most of the items was more than the proportionate target of 50 percentoftheentireCSPperiod.Asseveraltechnologieswerenewtherewere problems in adaptation and the Railways were gearing up for successful adaptationofnewtechnologies. However analysis of data supplied by the various zonal Railways indicated thatseveralitemsofworkwerelaggingbehindasdiscussedabove. Recommendation Indian Railways needs to take special efforts in provision of all items of modernSignallingsystems,asplanned,forachievingtheresultsofenhanced linecapacity,betteroperationalefficiencyandsafermovementoftrains. 2.9.3.2Maintenanceandinspection TheCSPlaysstressonpropermaintenanceofassetsandontheneedtomove from corrective maintenance towards preventive maintenance. The Plan envisages laying of maintenance schedules and ensuring adherence to the sameforalltypesofsignallinggearsandequipment.Itfurtherstipulatedthat maintenanceoperationswouldbegearedtopreserveanyequipmenttofulfill functions,forwhichithasbeendesigned.Correctivemaintenancecomesinto playonly afterequipmentbecomesdefective.Preventivemaintenanceonthe otherhandisappliedwhenequipmentisstilloperativeandproactivetreatment isgivenconsistingofchecks,examinationandsupervisoryinspections. The adherence to maintenance schedules for block instruments, relay rooms, IPS, point machines etc. was test checked in some locations in all zones. In fivezones(ECoR,NWR,NER,CRandNFR)nocasesofdelayinadherence tomaintenance schedules came to notice. In all otherzones the maintenance wasnotdoneasperschedule.Thedelaysforselectedstationsinthreezones WR,SERandSECRhavebeenanalyzedandare presentedbelow:
(Figuresshownumberoflocations)

Zone WR SECR SER

Delayof0to30 days 7 8 6

Delayof31to 60days 1 6 5

Delayof61to 90days 5 3

Delayofabove 90days 3 12

Therewereafewinstancesoffailureinbetweenthemaintenanceschedulesin abovethreezones.Thedelayinadheringtotheschedulesrangedbetweenone dayand249daysatUslapurstationinrespectofIPS/Batteries,wherefailure duringtheinterveningperiodwasalsoreported. Similarly, inallzonestherewas shortfall in inspections.Staffshortage, staff beingbusywithattendingtofaultsandotherspecialdutieswerecitedassome of the reasons for non adherence to maintenance schedules and shortfall in inspections. 48

Chapter2SignallingandTelecommunicationinIndianRailways

Indian Railways stated (January 2009) that there was a shortage of about 15percentinartisanandsupervisorystaffwhichwasbeingfilledupthrough special efforts and maintenance was being done. There have been isolated casesofdelayinadherenceofmaintenance. However,duringtestcheckoffewlocationsitwasfoundinAuditthedelayin adherenceofmaintenancescheduleoccurredinelevenzones,hencecouldnot beconsideredasisolatedcases. 2.9.3.3Standardisation of signallingequipment CSPrequiredthatthe lifeofequipmentshouldbemeticulouslyassessedand standardisation of equipment was to be ensured. Reports are prescribed to monitortheperformanceofnewequipmentinstalledandarecommunicatedto RailwayBoardmonthly.Akeyindicatorintheperformanceofthesesystems is Mean Time Between Failures (MTBF), which is the interval between failures and indicates reliability of the equipment. Another performance indicatorisMeanTimetoRepair(MTTR). DuringaudititwasobservedthatzonalRailways wereunabletoprovide standard expected performance parameters (MTTR, MTBF) for S&T equipmentbeingused. An analysis in audit of the down time of Integrated Power Supply System (IPS),DataLoggersandSSIshowedthattheMTBF,MTTRandactiveservice foreachhourofdowntimevariedvastlyfromRailwaytoRailwayandfrom maketomakeasillustratedbelow. .Equi pment
IPS IPS IPS IPS Data Logg er Data Logg er SSI Make Activeserviceforeach hourofdowntime
Maximum Minimum

Amar Raja HBL NIFE BSMC Statcon HBL NIFE

EFFTRO NICS

30,614 (WR) 47,773 (SWR) 2,37,240* (NER) 1,33,731 (NCR) 3,751 (SCR) 2,123 ((SCR) 28,890 (SR) 8,673 (SCR) 346 (WR)

26.84 (SER) 9.84 (NR) 45.97 (NR) 28.45 (NR) 8.2 (NR) 8.86 (SER) 352.38 (WCR) 245.44 (WCR)

Lowest MTBF (hours) 5,211.5 (NR) 3,326.25 (NR) 4,126.6 (NR) 2,819.54 (NR) 1,206.26 (SER) 5,915.51 (SER) 355.20 (WCR) 9,183.5 (SCR) 189.51 (WCR)

Highest MTBF (hours) 94,217.26 (SCR) 1,09,877.72 (SWR) 79,080 (NER) 7,48,384.10 (SECR) 88,272 (ER) 93,529.3 (ECR) 26,897.68 (SR) 667.51 (WR)

Lowest MTTR (hours) 1.39 (WR) 0.20 (NWR) 0.21 (NER) 3.1641 (NWR) 12.78 (SCR) 9.18 (SCR) 0.56 (SCR) 1.06 (SCR) 0.77 (WCR)

Highest MTTR (hours) 255.36 (SER) 337.91 (NR) 330.10 (SCR) 239.95 (SECR) 734.61 (SER) 1,353.52 (SWR) 1.78 (SER) 1.56 (WR)

US&S

SSI SSI

AZD Praha Siemens

(* projected BSMC IPShave worked for a totalof 79080hours andhave beendownforonly21minutes.)

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ReportNo.PA26 of200809 (Railways)

The large variation in performance with the highest MTBF and lowest MTBFof the same make of equipment varying in thousands of hoursor even lakhs of hours across different zones indicate that the life time of equipmentandexpectedperformanceparametersneedtobedefined. It is also observed that similar large variations exist between different brandsofthesameequipmentbeingusedinthesamezones(asalsoacross zones),e.g.inNWRonanaverage, o IPSof HBLNIFEmake wasdownforonly12minutesfor2,12,774 hours ofusageandhadan MTBFof2,12,784hours o IPS of Amar Raja make was down for one hour for every 12,631 hours ofusageandanMTBFof40,622.24hours o IPSofStatconwasdownforonehourforevery1873hoursofusage with an MTBFof5926.22hours. This once more underlines the need to define expected performance parameters and also calls into question as to why equipment with such poor performance is being procured when much better performing equipmentisavailable. The meantime taken to repair IPS varies from as low as 12 minutes (NWR)to337.91hours(NR). The mean time taken to repair data loggers ranged from 1353.52 hours (SWR)to9.18hours(SCR)

ThemeantimetakentorepairSSIrangedfrom0.56hours(SCR)to1.78 hoursinSER. Thusthemeantimetakentorepairdifferentequipmentisvaryingfroma few minutes to hundreds or even thousands of hours. In absence of a standardprescribedmaximumdowntimetheresponsetimetakenbythezones torepairareverydifferent. Itwasseenthattherewasvastvariationinthenumberoffailuresofsame makeoftheseinstallationsondifferentzonalRailways. Incase of IPS, while there was no failure reported inECoR for the four IPSofAmarRaja,therewere581failureson16IPSofthesamemakein SECR.InrespectofHBLNIFEmakeIPS,whilenofailurewasreportedin NCRforfourIPS,therewere511failuresfor82IPSinNR. In case of Data Loggers, while no failure was reported in SECR for 46 EFFTRONICS make Data Loggers, in WCR the number of failures reportedwas936for192DataLoggersofthesamemake.Whilenofailure wasreportedfor21HBLNIFEmakeofDataLoggersinWR,therewere 23 failuresinSERfor thetwo DataLoggersofthesamemake. In the case of SSI, while no failure was reported in NCR for 17 SSI (US&S),inSCRthefailuresreportedwere428incaseof12SSIsofsame make. Broadly similar trends are observed for other S&T equipment examinedduringaudit. 50

Chapter2SignallingandTelecommunicationinIndianRailways

Assuming that the suppliers of the equipment are approved suppliers whose products are expected tobeof high standard having consistent performance, the above trends are unusual. It is possible that the data collection and reporting needs a review in zones as during audit test check in SCR vast differencesinthefiguresreportedbythezoneandtheactualfiguresofMTBF andMTTRinrespectoffewinstallationswasobservedas detailedbelow: Sl.No. Equipment Figuresreportedbythe zone MTBF MTTR Analog Axle 63 to 698 20minutes Counters (TC hours working) Analog Axle 124hours 20minutes Counters (IB working) BPAC/SSDAC 4513 30minutes hours AsobservedinAudittest check MTBF MTTR 1095 to 74minutes 16060hours

701hoursto 49minutes 35040hours

Indian Railways stated (January 2009) that the audit recommendation given below has been noted and RDSO was being advised to study MTBF and MTTRofallmodernandnewtechnologysignallingequipments. Recommendation AbenchmarkfortheMTBFandMTTRshouldbefixedandcommunicatedto allconcernedsoastomonitortheefficiencyofworkingofmodernSignalling equipmentsandtheirmaintenance better. 2.9.3.4 Provisionofdissimilar standardequipmentonsameroute To ensure optimum utilisation of existing railway lines and ease of maintenanceandoperations,itisimportantthatsignallinginfrastructureofthe same standard is provided in all sections of a particular route. A review in auditonprovisionofmodernsignallingonzonalRailwaysrevealedthatnone of the zones (except SWR) have provided similar type of signalling on all sectionsofaparticularroute.Thoughmodern signalling wasprovidedinmany ofthesections,itwasnoticedthattheyareprovidedonscatteredsectionson different routes, instead of providing the same on all sections of a particular route. Atestcheckof372sectionsonIRrevealedthatthetypeofsignallingwasnot uniformon88sections.Outoftheabove,20sectionshaveabove120 percent oflinecapacityutilisation.OnsuchsectionstheRailwaysneedtoexplorethe possibility of upgradation of signalling system so as to avoid congestion/ detention. Indian Railways stated (January 2009) that as a policy, Indian Railways provideuniformsignallingstandardinthesamesection.However,therecould be some cases of mismatch on account of replacement of signalling on age conditionbasis. 51

ReportNo.PA26 of200809 (Railways)

However, during the test check of 372 sections it was noticed in Audit that around23percentofthesectionswerenothavingsimilarstandardsignalling equipment. Recommendation Indian Railways shouldaim to provide similar standard of signallingon all sectionsofaparticularroute,insteadofscatteredprovision,soastoachieve thedesiredresultofspeedandenhancedlinecapacityetc.onthatparticular route. Incasethemismatchisonaccountofreplacement,theRailwaysmay liketoresolveit. 2.9.3.5Signaldefects/ failures Corporate Safety Plan envisaged a consolidatedtarget for all typesof signal defectsfromthelevelof13.19incidentsperthousandZonalIntegratedSignal and Telecom Units (ZISTUs) at the end of March 2003 to 7.91 by end of March2008.Areviewofthedetailsofdefects/failuresrevealedthatonlysix zones(SCR,SR,NER,NR,CRandNCR)haveachievedthetargetenvisaged by CSP. In other zones the incidents per thousand ZISTUs ranged between 8.56 (in WCR) and 34.39 (in ECR). Thus majority of the zones have to undertake further efforts to achieve the targets. The delays in maintenance andinspectionsanddelayinprovisionofnewinfrastructureiscontributingto signaldefectsandfailures. Indian Railways stated (January 2009) that as envisaged in CSP, the signal failuresperthousandworkloadofZISTUshavecomedownto8.82bytheend ofMarch2008.Thiswasveryneartoatargetof7.91.Closemonitoringofall levelswasbeingdonetoimproveitfurtherandachievethetargetbytheend ofplanperiod. However, data furnished by the zonal Railways to Audit did not match the figureprovidedbytheRailway Board.Onlysixzonescouldachievethetarget andinremainingtenzonestheZISTUsrangedbetween8.56and34.39. (AnnexureVII) 2.9.3.6Vacanciesofstaffinsafetycategory CSP envisages that all safety category staff vacancies would be filled on urgentbasis. Areviewofmanpowerprovisioninrespectofsafetycategory staffonzonalrailwaysrevealedthatinallthe16zones,therewasshortage ofstaffinsafetycategory. Theshortagerangedfrom2.63percentto35.59 per cent in respect of gazetted officers, from 6.16 to 29.39 per cent in non gazetted signalling staff and from 2.44 to 76 per cent in respect of non gazettedtelecommunicationstaff. Inatestcheckoffewstationsoverallthezonesitwasfurtherseenthatthere were shortages in prescribed inspections of safety installations on all zonal Railways except ECoR. The main reason attributable for the above was shortageofstaff. Indian Railways stated (January 2009) that indents were placed on Railway RecruitmentBoardsinordertofillupthevacanciesandzoneswereaskedto

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acceleratethepaceofselectiontofillupgazettedvacancies.Consequentlythe vacancieshavecomedowninbothgazettedandnongazettedcategories. (AnnexuresVIII&IX) 2.9.3.7TrainingofSignallingandTelecommunicationpersonnel The CSP recognizes manpower as the most valuable asset for the highly labourintensiverailways.Itstressesthatmanpowerskillshavetobesuitably developed, and recognizes that adequate attention to the training facilities is needed.Infact,asearlyas1999,RailwayBoardhadsentacommunicationto the zonalrailways forimproving notonlythequalityoftraining impartedin thetrainingcentresbutalsotoimprovetheircapacityutilisationtomorethan 90percent. Thereare10zonaltrainingcentresonIndianRailwaysandthenationallevel Indian Railway Institute for Signal Engineering and Telecommunication (IRISET) at Secunderabad, which caters to the training needs regarding signalling and telecommunication. All institutes have been equipped with facilitiesfortrainingonmodernequipmentsandtechnologiesexceptthosein CR and SCR, where facilities for training onsome modernequipments like SSI, BPAC etc. have not been provided. In all 1,49,952 training slots were offeredbytheseinstitutescollectivelyduringthefiveyearsperiodof200304 to200708,theRailwayscouldnotutilise23,353slots(15.57percentofthe totalslots),whichisbelowthetargetfixedbyRailwayBoard. The table below shows the percentage of shortfall in utilisation of training slots.
Zone 200304 200405 200506 200607 200708 Average SCR Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil ER 34.96 36.71 4.33 Nil 38.97 28.74 SR 42.75 47.87 47.12 19.15 37.14 38.80 WR 17.38 19.91 3.10 27.16 28.35 19.18 SECR Nil 42.69 40.38 60.57 67.37 52.75 NER Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil NR 9.72 12.82 24.60 35.61 40.12 24.57 ECR 19.49 Nil Nil 47.02 32.36 32.94 CR 2.94 4.12 8.13 5.15 2.52 4.57 SER Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil Nil

Under utilisation of slots were noticed in seven training centres, except in SCR, NER and SER. While NER utilised moreslots than offered in allthe fiveyears,ERutilisedmoreslotsduring200607andECRalsoutilisedmore slotsduring200405and200506.OnNWR,theZonalTrainingCentre(ZTC) at Udaipur did not offer any slots for training during the year 200304 and 200506to200708.Intheyear200405,oneslotwasofferedwhichwasalso not utilised. The shortfall in training was also reported in the audit review on Modernisation of Signalling and Telecommunication system which covered the period from 199697 to 200001 (Chapter 4 of CAGs report No. 9A of 2002). There is appreciable improvement over the previous period in 53

ReportNo.PA26 of200809 (Railways)

utilisation of slots for training which has increased from 65.26 per cent to 84.43 per cent but further progress is required before the target set by the RailwayBoardcan beachieved. TheIRISETwassetupintheyear1957forprovidingcomprehensivetraining in railway signalling and telecommunication. A review of training slots offered and utilised during the period 200607 and 200708 revealed that while the overall utilisation was more than 90 per cent, the utilisation in respect of gazetted officers was 61 and 66 per cent and in respect of Non gazettedstaffwas102and96 percent. Indian Railways stated (January 2009) that increased emphasis on imparting trainingtosignallingofficersisalreadybeinglaidinviewofinductionofnew technology. There was progressive increase in the quantum of officers and staff trained in IRISET and in zonal signal training centres. The works to augment the infrastructure in training centres were also being periodically sanctionedwithintheavailableresources/constraints. Recommendations Since modern Signalling needs well trained staff to operate the system, IR shouldprovidemoreinfrastructureintrainingcentresforimpartingtraining to all the staff operating such systems. The ongoing efforts need to be sustainedonacontinuousbasis. 2.9.4 ExecutionofS&Tworks SignallingandTelecommunication(S&T)isanengineeringactivity,needless tosaythatitsbenefitscanaccrueonlyiftherequiredinfrastructurecomesup on the ground on time as scheduled. Therefore timely completion of works becomes central for realization of goals set for S&T works. While ensuring timelycompletion,itisalsoimportantthatrelevantorders/instructionsinforce arekeptinviewsoastoensureadherencetoorganizationalpolicy. In all 2153 S&T works/contracts were being carried out on zonal Railways duringtheauditperiod,outofwhich,642works/contractspertainingtoS&T weretestchecked.Itwasobservedthatseveralplannedworksweredelayedor hadnotbeentakenuporhavebeen abandoned.Thecommonreasonsforthese werechangesinscopeofworks,delayincivilengineeringworks,delay/non supplyof material, delay in approval of plans/drawings, delay in finalisation of tenders and award of contracts. These are well within the control of the organization and could have been avoided through better planning and co ordination.Itwasalsoobservedthattherewerecaseswheretheinstructionsof the Board were not adhered to. Some of these cases are discussed in the paragraphsthatfollow: 2.9.4.1Executionofworkswithoutproperplanning Rules provide for proper and careful planning at every stage from the divisionalleveltoRailwayBoard,accordingtothesizeofinvestment,before undertaking any work so as to avoid the need for making any substantial modifications etc. Audit of selected works undertaken by zonal Railways

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revealed that there were 133 cases over eleven zones where works were plannedbuteithernottakenup,abandoned,delayedorfrozen. Out of the 133 cases, 55 related to Safety works which included track circuiting, BPAC, RRI works, point machines, SSI, PI, ACD, IBS, LED, AWSandMACLSworks). the Railways haveeither foreclosedseveralprojectsmidwayorchanged the scope of work after incurring substantial expenditure due to various reasonswhichcouldhavebeensortedoutbeforeexecutingsuchprojects. Insomeothercasesitwasobservedthatafterinstallingaparticularsystem with substantial investment, the Railways decided to change the system. The total expenditure incurred by the Railways in such modifications, foreclosure, total replacement of system etc. was Rs.9.63 crore on three zones(NER0.35crore,CR7.92croreandSER1.36crore). (AnnexureX) AworkoflayingofOpticalFibreCable(OFC)betweenVijaipurJammu and Jammu Tawi in NR was completed in March 2003 at a cost of Rs.66.80lakh.Whileundertakingthetrackdoublingworkonthesection, theOFC gotburiedundertheembankmentofnewly laidtrackandcould not be retrieved. Similarly in another case, the OFC laid between PathankotandVijaipurJammuatacostofRs.1.78crorewasbeingburied undertheembankmentwheredoublingworkwasinprogress.This ledto wasteofRs.2.45crore. Indian Railways stated (January 2009) that originally the alignment was to comeonoppositesideofthecablebutduetocertainengineeringconstraints thealignmentaspersurveyreportcouldnotbefollowedandbetween VJPJ JATalignment was keptonsamesideofthetrack.Asaresultcablealready laidcameundertheembankmentofproposedtrack. Recommendation Indian Railways needs to do proper planning with a futuristic view before undertaking a work on a route where change of alignment etc. could be possible in the near future so as to avoid the expenditure becoming infructuous. 2.9.4.2Costandtimeoverrunonworks Atestcheckof642works/contracts,outof2153works/contractsbeingcarried out,onzonalRailwaysrevealedthatonly18workscouldbecompletedwithin thescheduleddateofcompletion. Thirtysevenworkswerecompletedwithadelayofuptosixmonthswitha costoverrunofRs.2.47crorein25ofthese37works. Forty works were completed with delay between six months and 12 monthswithcostoverrunofRs.21lakhinthreeworks Ninetynineworkswerecompletedwithdelaybetweenoneandtwoyears withcostoverrunofRs.2.82crorein19works,

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Fifty fiveworkswerecompletedwithdelaybetweentwoandthree years withcostoverrun ofRs.14.68crorein11works One hundred and twelve works were completedwith delay of over three yearsandcostoverrunofRs.19.66crorein29works. Restoftheworkswas stillinprogress.Inmany ofthecompletedworks,the completionreportswerenotdrawn.Thisisdetrimentaltopublicinterestasnot formally closing a completed work can lead to current revenue expenditure being capitalized, advance remaining unadjusted etc. Even in works still in progress many are beyond the scheduleddate of completion. In the work of replacementofleverframebySolidStateInterlocking[EstimateNo.3/CSTE of 199596) at Masagram, Baruipara and Janai Road on ER, the date of completionwasMarch1997,whereasthework isstill inprogressevenafter 11 years of its scheduled date of completion. The reasons were delay in sanctioning the estimate, delay in execution of work by contractor, delay in supplyofstoresbyRailways,delayincompletionofalliedengineeringworks etc. (AnnexureXI) Indian Railways stated (January 2009) that the basic reasons for delay in progress of works were due to non availability of capablecontractors, sharp increase in price of the metals and shortage of signal engineers and staff for design and execution works. Steps had been taken to overcome all these issues. 2.9.4.3Contractmanagement In works contracts, contractorsare required toquote their rates according to the schedule of rates prepared by the Railway for executing a work where several items are to be procured from the market by the contractor for installationasapartofthework.Thescheduleofratesisrevisedperiodically afteran intervalof few yearsaccordingtothemarketconditions. Inorderto capitalize on the trend of reduction in prices of electronic items, Railway Boarddirected (July2006 and October2007)the ZonalRailways to procure CablesandLEDsignalsthroughstorescontractinsteadofworkscontractsoas to avoid the higher payment to the contractor as per schedule of rates. A reviewofworkscontractinzonalRailwaysrevealedthat the Railways incurred avoidable extra expenditure due to inclusion of certainitemsinworkscontractwheretheratewashigherthanthemarket rate.Tenzones(SCR,ER,SR,WR,SECR,NER,NR,CR,SERandNFR) out of 16 zones had incurred extra expenditure of Rs.8.86 crore on this account. theworkofenhancingsafetyandreliabilityofcontrolblockandLCgate onMysoreArsikeresectionofSWRhadtobeforeclosedduetodelay in procurementofcablesbytheRailwaysandtherefusalofthecontractorto extend the validity of the contract. The balance work was carried out through a fresh contract at higher rate incurring extra expenditure of Rs.71.84 lakh. Further due to the delay in completing the work, Railway

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hadtoretaintheexistingleasedBSNLlinesatacostofRs.8.43lakhfrom September2006toMarch2008. in NR, two works provision of automatic signalling on Delhi Sabzi MandiPanipat section and provision of track circuiting and automatic signalling on PanipatAmbala section were started in February 2005 and October 2004 at an estimated cost of Rs.20.90 crore and 24.01 crore respectively.Theworkscouldnotbecompletedsofarduetononsupply ofcable,Signallingplan,noncompletionofengineeringworks etc.Thus theexpenditureofRs.17.83croreincurredsofarremainsblocked. 2.9.4.4Unfruitfulexpenditure In SCR, review of works for provision of crossing stations on Gooty Dharmavaram section showed that the work of provision of four crossing stationswastakenupwiththeaimofimprovingsectioncapacity.Therunning timeonfourblocksectionspriortotakinguptheworkwas25,16,19and14 minutes. After completion of works, the running time of 25 minutes on the slowest block of (GootyRamarajupalli) section was reduced to 20 minutes, therunningtimeonothersectionswasbroughtdowntolessthan14minutes. Since the running time of other three sections was below 20 minutes even before provision of crossing stations, the capacity enhancement work could notgiveamajorgainafteranexpenditureofRs.6.59crore.Thezonedidnot examinetheSignalling alternativesbeforeexecutingthework. 2.9.4.5Replacement/improvement works on MG section identified for gaugeconversion RailwayBoarddirected (June 2003) that at stations where gauge conversion workissanctionedandislikelytobecompletedbyMarch2007,replacement of gears is to be taken up under gauge conversion. Keeping in mind the economy measures, financial interest of the Railway along with the safety parameters, heavy investment should not be made on the lines which have alreadybeenincludedintheGaugeConversionPlan. AuditobservedthatsomezonalRailwaysundertook 15works(ineightzones) of rehabilitation/renewal and modification works of Signalling systems on Metre Gauge sections planned for gauge conversion contrary to above instructions. Avoidable expenditure of Rs.20.11 crore was incurred on such works in six zones (SCR6.59 crore, SR1.74 crore, SWR0.21 crore, NER 0.49crore,ECR2.69crore,andNFR8.39crore). (AnnexureXII) 2.9.4.6Expenditureonunjustifiedworks RailwayBoarddecided(September2005)thatPI/RRI/EIwillbeprovidedon allA,B,C,D,DSpecialandESpecialroutesofBGonaprogrammedbasis. StationsonEroutewillnotbeprovidedwithPI/RRI/EIandonlymechanical rehabilitation of the Signalling system would be carried out. In cases where work of providing PI/RRI/EI on E routes has commenced these would be completedbutnonewworksonErouteswouldbetakenup.Areviewinaudit

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revealedthateightsuchcasestakenuponfivezones.Someofthosecasesare detailedbelow: in SCR, while 30 stations on D Route were operated with electro mechanicalgears/leverframestoendof3132008,Panelinterlockingwas providedat19stationson Erouteduringtheyears200607and200708 atacostofRs.30.11crore,contrarytotheBoardsdecision.Thoughthe Railway administration justifiedthattheseworks werecarriedoutaspart ofGaugeConversion,itisnoticedthatthesewerecarriedoutsubsequent toBoardsdirections. in SWR, replacement of Signalling gears with centralised operation of pointsatBhadravathiandShimogaStations(onERoute)wassanctioned in November 2004 at a cost of Rs.4.61 crore. The work was taken up during November 2005 and the same is in progress. An expenditure of Rs.2.06crore hassofarbeenbooked. provisionofMACLSwithcentralisedoperationofpointsalongwithPIin BirurShimogaandChikjajurRayadurgaSections(ERoute)ofSWRwas sanctioned (March 2007) at a cost of Rs.9.14 crore. The work was undertaken through three separate contracts in September 2007 and the sameareinprogress.AnamountofRs.52.57lakhhasbeenbookedsofar. in SECR, in 2006 a work of providing emergency control and block communication was taken up on a section (KalumnaKhaprikheda) in Nagpur division, citing passenger traffic needs and need to improve emergencycontrolandblockcommunications.Thissectionwasactuallya siding with no passenger traffic. The work was later short closed, but material worth Rs.25.60 lakh was procured of which Rs.1.03 lakh still remains.Inviewoftheabovefactsthisworkwasunwarranted. (AnnexureXIII) 2.9.5 Telecommunication Thetelecommunicationfacilitiesof IRservetwomainpurposes(i)operational forcontrollingandmonitoringdailytrainmovementsand(ii)administrative for collecting and transmitting data from various activity centres like passenger reservation system etc. The telecommunication activities earlier used infrastructure provided by the Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL). The Railway Reforms Committee (1983) had recommended that IR should developitsownnetworkoftelecommunicationsystemindependentofBSNL fortransmittingdata.AccordinglyIRstarted(1988)layingopticalfibrecable (OFC).RailtelCorporationofIndiaLimited(RCIL)wasformedin200001to exploitsurplustelecomcapacitycreatedduetointroductionofOFC.Revenue generatedwastobesharedwithIndianRailways.

2.9.5.1Delayintransferof datacircuitonRailwaysmedium Railway Board decided that Railways should plan for switching over from leasedBSNLcircuitstoRailwaysownOFCnetwork.Afterdeliberationsheld 58

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with the Chief Signal and Telecommunication Engineers in May/September 2006 during the meeting, the progress of these works was found to be unsatisfactory and the works were held up because of lack of last mile connectivityanditwasdesired(2006)thatRailwaysshouldtransferasmany circuits as possible to Railways medium. A review of the position in zonal Railways revealed that out of the 2666 circuits hired from BSNL, 708 were identified for transfer to Railways own medium. The IR could achieve this target partly. Retentionof BSNL circuits and delay in surrendering some of these circuits resulted in avoidable payment of Rs.3.70 crore (approx.) as rentalcharges,asworkedoutinaudit. Indian Railways stated (January 2009) that this was being monitored continuously and there had been substantial progress over a period of more than two years. Initially, 708 circuits were identified for transfer and as on date,1200circuitshavealreadybeentransferredandtheprocessisstillon. (AnnexureXIV) 2.9.6 UtilisationoffundsunderSRSF 2.9.6.1FinancialprogressofSRSF InpursuanceofRailwaySafetyReviewCommitteesrecommendations,anon lapsableSpecialRailwaySafetyFund(SRSF)ofRs.17,000crorewascreated in October 2001 to clear the arrears in replacement/renewal of over aged safetyrelatedassets viz.,tracks,bridges,S&Tgearsandrolling stockandto cater to certain safety enhancement works. SRSF was created for a six year periodfrom200102to200607.Itwasextendedupto200708. Percentageof utilisation ofSRSF(onS&T)fortheperiod200304to200708 isgiveninthetablebelow:
Zone SCR ER SR SWR ECoR WR NWR SECR NER NR ECR CR WCR SER NFR NCR 200304 98.70 124.37 111.25 100.58 97.93 72.36 88.40 100 109.10 109.25 107.74 101.52 125.55 104.93 116.32 98.03 200405 84.95 96.67 102.49 101.50 101.05 84.63 92.37 85.88 101.73 79.83 81.89 84.71 118.98 99.70 100.67 41.51 200506 104.93 111.52 105.20 101.28 95.76 101.27 93.86 91.67 96.42 94.58 90.37 82.39 123.99 96.94 154.20 107.22 200607 99.30 110.63 95.90 74.79 94.59 112.78 117.61 89.05 100 101.28 101.70 97.56 105.81 97.68 82.82 103.24 200708 106.31 103.38 97.19 95.84 110.15 122.44 108.16 79.81 101.43 96.65 115.48 99.16 121.04 98.47 69.65 99.53

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A review of the allotment and actual expenditure for the years 200304 to 200708revealed that most ofthe zonescould notutilise the full amount of funds allotted to them, however the utilisation was by and large 80 per cent andaboveinmostzonesfortheperiod.Afewofthezonesutilisedmorefunds thanallottedunderSRSF,somezoneshavenotutilisedthefullallotmentinall theyears.ItwasalsonoticedthatER(Rs.10.40lakh),SR(Rs.13.70lakh)and SER(Rs.5.01crore)divertedtheSRSFfundsforotherthanSRSFworks. 2.9.6.2Physicalprogressof workscarriedoutunderSRSF A review of works being carried out under SRSF revealed that most of the zoneswerebehindthetargetplannedonMarch2008. Percentage of shortfall in completion of S&T works under SRSF is given in thetable.
Railway Numberofworks planned 216 775 27 19 28 23 5 13 43 49 331 358 31 62 19 29 2028 Number completedtoend of31308 216 651 18 17 5 18 2 5 43 16 96 301 31 47 19 5 1490 Balancetoend of31308 0 124 9 2 23 5 3 8 0 33 235 57 0 15 0 24 538 %ofshortfall

SCR ER SR SWR ECoR WR NWR SECR NER NR ECR CR WCR SER NFR NCR Total

0 16 33 11 82 22 60 62 0 67 71 16 0 24 0 83 27

It is seen from the above table that only four zones (SCR, NER, WCR and NFR)completedallSRSFworksby endofMarch2008. From the above it can also be seen that there is a huge mismatch between financialexpenditureandphysicalprogressinsixzones(ECoR,NWR,SECR, NR,ECRandNCR).Inthesezonesthefundutilisation iscloseto100 percent or more in more than four years but the physical achievement is disproportionate,viz.18 percentinECoR,40 percentinNWR,38 percentin SECR,33percent inNR,29percent inECRand17percentinNCR.This indicates that monies have been spent /advanced to parties without corresponding progress on ground. Some of the reasons for SRSF works remainingincompletewereinvestigatedinsomeofthezones.Itwasfoundin NR that lack of suitable contractors and sufficient staff with contractors for carryingoutworksatmultiplelocationsnon availabilityofbuildings,sleepers and turnouts shortage of Signalling materials and staff and lengthy 60

Chapter2SignallingandTelecommunicationinIndianRailways

procurementprocedureswereholdingbackthecompletionofworks.Whilein SWR, works were delayed or could not be completed due to civil works remaining incomplete, delay in issue of approved plans, frequent changes in yard plans, changes in technologyetc. Frequent change in yard plans is also thereasonforthedelayofaworkinSER. 2.9.7 Miscellaneous 2.9.7.1Storesmanagement Soundinventorycontrolrequiresthatoptimumlevelofstockbemaintainedto avoid blockage of capital and idling of stores. Test check of surplus/non movingstoreswithsomeSeniorSection EngineersonzonalRailwaysason 31 March2008showedthatitemsworthRs.28.16crorewerebeingheldinstock foroveroneyear,outofwhichstoresworthRs.12.17crorehadbeeninstock foroverthreeyears.Asthevalueof allstoresitemswasnotavailablewiththe stockholders,thevalueofentiresurplusstorescouldnotbequantified. IndianRailways stated (January2009)thatnecessary instructionswerebeing issuedtozonalRailways. (AnnexureXV) 2.9.7.2Ineffectiveutilisationofworkshopfacilities To meet the requirement of manufacturing/overhauling/repairing of various Signallingequipmentsandtheirparts,IRestablishedseveralworkshopsover thezones.Areviewoftheutilisationofworkshopfacilitiesrevealedthatthe full potential of available man hours was not utilised in the workshops. The man hoursutilisedasperjobcardswerelessthantheman hoursrecordedin Gate Attendance (GA) cards. The loss worked out in audit due to idling of manhourswasRs.10.96crore(Rs.2.83croreinSCR,Rs.6.48croreinNER, Rs.63lakhinNRandRs.55lakhinNFRduring200304to200708andRs 47lakhinERduring200607and200708). IndianRailwaysstated(January2009)thatzonalRailwayswerebeingadvised fortakingnecessaryaction. (AnnexureXVI) 2.9.7.3Non compliance of Boards instructions in discontinuing uneconomicalmanufactureofS&Titemsinworkshops Railway Board directed (February 2004) that cost of each product manufactured in the workshop be compared with price received in the purchaseordersandwherevertheworkshopcostsarehigh,theproductionbe discontinuedorextensiveandeffectivecostcuttingmeasuresbetaken.Atest check of unit costs of few items manufactured in S&T Workshops with the costatwhichthesewerebeingprocuredfrommarketonfewzonesrevealed that manufacturing cost was much higher than the market price of the item. TheextraexpenditureamountedtoRs.13.32crore(SCRRs.2.29crore,SR Rs.43.70lakh,WRRs.2.70lakh,ERRs.4.29crore,NRRs.80.79lakh, CR Rs.17.88 lakh, NER Rs.5.23 crore, SER Rs 0.88 lakh and NFRRs 4.77lakh).

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ReportNo.PA26 of200809 (Railways)

IndianRailwaysstated(January2009)thatzonalRailwayswerebeingadvised fortakingnecessaryaction. (AnnexureXVII) 2.9.7.4Blockingoffunds TheCSPrecognizesthatpolicydecisionsmaybeneededforinterdepartmental coordination. Audit observed following cases of interdepartmental non coordination: ElectronicpointmachineshavebeenprocuredonmanyzonesbytheS&T department.Thethickwebswitchesrequiredfortheiroperationhave not been provided by the Engineering Department so far. Electronic point machines procured at a total cost of Rs.6.51 crore were lying idle in six zones (SCRRs.3.60 crore, ECoRRs.5 lakh, WRRs.1.04 crore, NR Rs.1.08crore,SERRs.15lakhandNCRRs.59lakh).Whilefewofthem were procured way back in October 2002 (in ECoR) most of the EPMs were lying idle since 200506 for want of thick web switches. It was furthernoticedthatinSCRduetononavailabilityofthickwebswitches, thezonehasarrangedforUniversalPointMachinesforrunningturnouts as interim measure at a cost of Rs.1.06 crore, which would be rendered wasteoncetheelectronicpointmachinesareinstalled. Indian Railways stated (January 2009) that implementation of any item requires interdepartmental coordination. As per laid down procedure, views/clearance are taken well in advance from concerned departments. Railwaysarebeingadvisedfortakingnecessaryaction. (AnnexureXVIII) Codal provisions require that for any deposit work undertaken by the Railways on behalf of an outside agency, the estimated amount of expenditure has to be deposited by the agency before commencement of work. However audit observed that SWR executed four works incurring expenditureofRs.6.51croreonbehalfofRCILforwhichonlyRs.50lakh was depositedby them forone work. Though advance deposit was tobe obtained before executing the work, RCIL has not yet deposited the amountwiththeRailway.

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