All S&T Officers to Be Trained on Kavach by March 2026

Rapid Summary

• Teh Indian Railways Institute of Signal Engineering and Telecommunications (IRISET) plans to train all Signal & Telecom officers across all railway zones by March 31, 2026, aiming to expedite the deployment of the indigenously developed ‘Kavach’ automatic train protection system.
• Eight one-week crash courses and six specialised training programmes on ‘Loco Kavach’ fitment have been conducted this year for officers and supervisors.
• Since July, senior officials from various zones have attended appreciation programs on Kavach, while in-house training for faculty members has begun to enhance internal capabilities.
• Cross-functional departments and industry stakeholders are now part of expanded training initiatives related to Kavach deployment.
• IRISET’s Centre of Excellence (coe) for ATP-Kavach is driving innovations like the Kavach-Electronic Interlocking interface, radio dialog advancements, standardisation in braking algorithms, and virtual reality simulations.
• Two new Electronic Interlocking labs were commissioned this year; integration with existing systems involves collaborations with OEMs (original equipment manufacturers).
• Advanced tools such as an LTE lab with VOIP exchange using open-source technology have been deployed; simulation facilities also saw upgrades.
• In 2025 so far:

– 172 training programs were held, benefiting 4,531 personnel.
– An additional 624 industry professionals received guidance on railway signalling and telecom technologies.
– Six engineering institutions partnered to incorporate modules on Kavach into B.Tech curricula.

Indian Opinion Analysis

The structured effort by IRISET reflects India’s commitment to modernizing it’s railway infrastructure and ensuring higher safety standards through indigenous technology like the ‘Kavach’ system. The goal-oriented timeline till March 2026 suggests a focused approach while addressing both human resource skill development through complete training programs and technological advancement via partnerships with OEMs.

The establishment of additional labs focusing on Electronic Interlocking (EI) systems shows foresight in creating scalable solutions compatible with nationwide deployments. Similarly valuable is IRISET’s inclusion of cross-functional teams and also industry players-signaling a collaborative pathway between public institutions and private stakeholders needed for large-scale rollouts.While the rapid upskilling efforts are laudable-training over four thousand personnel in less than a year-efficient execution will ultimately hinge on how effectively thes learnings translate into practical outcomes across India’s vast rail network without bottlenecks or compatibility issues during real-world implementation.

Read More: [source Link]