Ensure ‘double locking arrangements’ for relay rooms housing signalling equipment: Railways to zones

Station relay rooms and compounds housing signalling equipment should have “double locking arrangements”, the railways has directed its zonal headquarters after initial probe showed “signalling interference” as a suspected reason behind the Odisha triple-train accident. The crash on Friday in the state’s Balasore district killed 275 people and injured more than 1,000.

Railway officials had earlier indicated that possible “sabotage” and tampering with the electronic interlocking system, which detects the presence of trains, led to the accident involving the Shalimar-Chennai Central Coromandel Express, the Bengaluru-Howrah Superfast Express and a goods train.