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A 16-coach Vande Bharat sleeper train completed a high-speed trial of the indigenous Kavach automatic train protection system on the Hazrat Nizamuddin-Palwal route, conducted by Northern Railway, with the train reaching a maximum speed of 160 kmph.
Vande Bharat Sleeper Train Completed High-Speed Kavach Trial
During the trial, the Vande Bharat sleeper covered nearly 50 km distance between Hazrat Nizamuddin and Palwal in around 40 minutes. The train departed from Hazrat Nizamuddin at approximately 1:38 pm and reached Palwal at 2:21 pm. It stopped at Palwal for 31 minutes before departing at 2:52 pm. The train then returned to Hazrat Nizamuddin at 3:32 pm. The trial was significant as it was the first time a 16-coach Vande Bharat sleeper train was operated at 160 kmph on this section. The test mainly focused on checking the performance of the Kavach system while the train was travelling at high speed.
Railway officials said the communication between the locomotive pilot and the station remained smooth during the journey. Kavach is an indigenous automatic train protection system developed to improve railway safety. It can alert the locomotive pilot when required and can also automatically apply brakes if intervention is necessary. The system is designed to reduce the risk of accidents caused by signal violations or human error.
The train could not maintain 160 kmph throughout the entire route because development work was underway on the Faridabad main line. Since both main lines were closed, the train was diverted through a loop line near Faridabad, which led to a speed reduction while passing through the station.
The latest test follows around 30 Kavach trials conducted using locomotives on the New Delhi-Palwal route. Indian Railways is now working towards a wider rollout of the Kavach system across its network to improve train safety and provide additional support to locomotive pilots.