Palakkad: A few days ago, the Vande Bharat Express from Kasaragod to Thiruvananthapuram broke down at Shorannur, leaving the passengers ‘trapped’ for over three hours. Although the technical experts at a Hyderabad-based company that manages the electronic and electrical features on the Vande Bharat trains did an immediate online inspection, they could not locate the issue. The railway authorities clarified that this company was supposed to inspect and intervene as per the contract. This incident, meanwhile, exposes the lack of technical support and facilities for sudden intervention at the divisional levels if the Vande Bharat trains face any technical faults or breakdowns. Moreover, it shows how important it is to appoint technical experts in the lower or divisional levels as the government plans to launch more Vande Bharat trains, reports Manorama Online.

Why Vande Bharat stops even for small glitches
The train was moved to Thiruvananthapuram by attaching an electrical engine in Shorannur. The technical team at Thiruvananthapuram reportedly found a loosened device between the C 10 and C 11 coaches. One of the highlights of the Vande Bharat trains is its high safety feature that stops the train without operating the traction motor in case of a technical glitch. Meanwhile, repairing a technical fault on a Vande Bharat train in Vishakhapatnam took hours. There have been suggestions that such emergency situations could be handled better if the divisions were given instructions at least about the basic technical features of the Vande Bharat trains. The railway says that although the company has a high official who manages the technical aspects of Vande Bharat trains in Thiruvananthapuram, he also manages some important stations in the neighbouring states. Besides, there is a severe shortage of employees in the mechanical and electrical departments as appointments have not been conducted in the last two years.

TVM – Kasaragod Vande Bharat
The Thiruvananthapuram – Kasaragod Vande Bharat Express broke down at Shorannur and continued its journey with the help of a regular electrical engine. This train reached Thiruvananthapuram at 2.15 am, around three hours later than the scheduled arrival time. The train was then moved to the Kochuveli Yard, where the glitch was resolved in just two hours. A fault in the train’s communication circuit reportedly caused the problem. The rake that broke down was apparently a spare one allotted to the central railways when the regular Vande Bharat rake was sent to Chennai for maintenance.

Earlier, experts speculated that the train might have broken down due to a technical glitch in its sensor system. The design experts at the Chennai Integral Coach Factory (ICF), where the train was built, also said that the breaking system would automatically lock if a problem is detected in its sensor. The train will not be able to move forward after that.

Train captain
The Vande Bharat trains are equipped with multiple electronic systems compared to other trains. There are facilities inside the train captain’s cabin and behind the loco pilot’s cabin to monitor these systems constantly. The traction motor would be shut down when something goes wrong with the sensor, stopping the train immediately. The experts at the ICF said that such technical features generally seen in aeroplanes are included in the Vande Bharat trains as part of its high safety feature.

Complaint monitoring system
In case of a technical glitch in a Vande Bharat train, the complaint monitoring system will analyse the part of the train where the issue was reported. For this, all Vande Bharat trains have specially trained technical crew members. The train would only be connected to another electric engine if the glitch cannot be resolved using the complaint monitoring system and the onboard technical team. The electric engine could be connected at either side of the Vande Bharat train. The Vande Bharat would then change into pneumatic mode, like the regular trains, when the electric engines are fixed. Interestingly, the Vande Bharat trains are equipped with a unique system that could change each unit in the train into pneumatic mode.

Doors can be opened
The experts dismiss the claim that the passengers in the Vande Bharat train that broke down in Shorannur were trapped inside as the doors could not be opened. The doors could be opened even if the engine shuts down or the electricity goes off. The passengers could open the doors from inside using the emergency switch. Besides, the technicians could also open them from outside. Each coach has special systems for opening and closing the door. Such ‘secret’ safety systems, only known to the railway officials, have been added to prevent crimes like dacoity. Meanwhile, rail passengers hope the railway authorities will properly clarify why the Vande Bharat Express broke down at Shorannur. 

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