Bhubaneswar, June 23 (AHN) Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi on Tuesday welcomed the approval for the deployment of Kavach across 631 km of the East Coast Railway (ECoR) network for Rs 270 crore, describing it as a major milestone in the development of the state's rail infrastructure.

Taking to his X account, the Chief Minister wrote, “The approval of Kavach deployment over 631 route km of East Coast Railway marks a major milestone for our rail infrastructure.”

He further noted that as a key part of the ECoR network, Odisha will benefit from enhanced passenger safety, reduced risk of accidents, improved train operations, and greater reliability of rail services.

“This modern, indigenously developed technology will further strengthen connectivity, support economic growth, and contribute to building a safer and more efficient railway system for the people of Odisha. Sincere gratitude to Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri @narendramodi Ji and Hon’ble Railway Minister Shri @AshwiniVaishnaw Ji for their commitment to strengthening rail safety and modernising India's railway network,” he added.

According to an official statement, the Indian Railways has approved the provision of Kavach on 631 Route Kilometres (RKm) of ECoR at a cost of Rs 270 crore. The project covers six important railway sections of East Coast Railway, namely Baghuapal-Budhapank, Haridaspur-Paradeep, Khurda Road (KUR)-Balangir, Naupada-Gunupur, Lanjigarh Road-Junagarh and Bobbili-Salur.

The sanctioned work forms part of Indian Railways’ larger programme for deployment of Kavach with LTE-based communication backbone across the railway network. It is worth noting that Kavach is India’s indigenously developed Automatic Train Protection (ATP) system designed to enhance safety by preventing signal passing at danger (SPAD), over-speeding and train collisions.

“The system continuously monitors train movement and automatically applies brakes whenever required, significantly improving operational safety,” stated the officials.

It is further underscored that the installation of Kavach on these routes will help achieve a higher level of safety in train operations by providing automatic train protection and collision avoidance capabilities. In addition, Kavach enables safer and more reliable train movement during adverse weather conditions, including dense fog, thereby improving service reliability and punctuality.

The project is expected to benefit both passenger and freight train operations across key sections of Odisha and neighbouring regions served by East Coast Railway. It will further strengthen Indian Railways’ ongoing mission to expand Kavach coverage across high-density and strategically important routes.