📘 Q.12 IAS Prelims 2025 — Science & Technology (Indian Railways | Kavach | National Rail Plan)

🧷 Authentic Classroom Explanation by IAS Monk


📌 The Question:

Consider the following statements:

Statement I: Indian Railways have prepared a National Rail Plan (NRP) to create a future-ready railway system by 2028.
Statement II: ‘Kavach’ is an Automatic Train Protection system developed in collaboration with Germany.
Statement III: ‘Kavach’ system consists of RFID tags fitted on track in station section.

Which of the statements given above are not correct?

(a) I and II only
(b) II and III only
(c) I and III only
(d) I, II and III


Answer:

(a) I and II only


🧑‍🏫 Authentic Classroom Explanation:

🔹 Statement I — ❌ Not correct

Indian Railways prepared the National Rail Plan (NRP) for India–2030, not 2028.
Its objective is to create a future-ready railway system by 2030, with a major focus on:

  • Increasing rail freight modal share to 45%
  • Capacity planning based on traffic demand projections
  • Long-term infrastructure and logistics integration

Hence, Statement I is incorrect.


🔹 Statement II — ❌ Not correct

Kavach is indigenously developed by the Research Designs & Standards Organisation (RDSO) in collaboration with Indian industry, not Germany.
It is a Safety Integrity Level-4 (SIL-4) certified Automatic Train Protection (ATP) system.

Hence, Statement II is incorrect.


🔹 Statement III — ✅ Correct

The Kavach system does use RFID tags fitted along the track, including station and block sections.
These RFID tags help:

  • Identify train location
  • Prevent Signal Passing At Danger (SPAD)
  • Enable automatic braking when necessary

Hence, Statement III is correct.


📌 Therefore, the statements not correct are I and II only.


🔍 Curiosity Raiser:

Why did Indian Railways choose indigenous Kavach over expensive imported ATP systems like ETCS?
Because scalability + affordability + Indian operating conditions matter more than foreign labels.


🧠 Enrichment Notes (Prelims Edge):

  • Kavach key components:
    • RFID tags on track
    • On-board locomotive equipment
    • Station Kavach units
    • Optical fibre / radio communication
  • Core function: Prevents collisions by automatic braking if driver fails to act
  • NRP-2030 aligns with:
    • PM Gati Shakti
    • National Logistics Policy
    • Dedicated Freight Corridors (DFC)

🪔 IAS Monk Whisper:

“In public systems, safety is not imported — it is engineered at home.”

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