Driven by Systemic Changes, \u201cSafety Is a Matter of Public Trust, Not a Technical Metric\u201d: Shri Ashwini Vaishnaw<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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Posted On: 17 APR 2026 6:24PM by PIB Delhi
Every day, Indian Railways moves over two crore passengers across one of the world’s largest and most complex rail networks, running more than 25,000 trains daily across 14,000-plus passenger services. For decades, the public conversation around railways centred on expansion and connectivity. Since 2014, however, a fundamental policy reset placed safety at the core of all operations. The results, now visible in hard data, reflect a transformation that is structural, technological, and financial in equal measure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Union Minister for Railways, Shri Ashwini Vaishnaw, writing in a national publication, noted that globally, railway safety is measured through fatalities or accidents per billion passenger-kilometres, allowing comparisons across systems of differing scale. Shri Vaishnaw underscored that During PM Modi\u2019s first term, a clear message was delivered: Safety First. And since 2014, Indian Railways has pursued a comprehensive, tech-led, consistently funded transformation of its safety ecosystem.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Union Minister also pointed out that in the European Union, widely regarded as a benchmark, the risk of death for a rail passenger is estimated at about 0.09 fatalities per billion passenger-kilometres, making rail travel safer than road transport and comparable with aviation. The Union Minister stated that India’s story is best understood not through claims of parity, but through the pace and intent of change, adding that with the Consequential Accident Index now at 0.01, Indian Railways compares favourably with global averages for large mixed-traffic rail systems tracked by international rail bodies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A Decade Compared to a Decade: The Structural Shift<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Shri Vaishnaw presented what he described as the clearest proof of systemic change, a decade-on-decade comparison of consequential train accidents. The Union Minister highlighted that a key indicator of this transformation is the sharp decline in consequential train accidents. From 135 accidents recorded in 2014\u201315, the number has reduced drastically to just 16 in 2025\u201326, marking an impressive reduction of nearly 89%, even as passenger and freight operations have significantly increased. The Consequential Accident Index, measuring accidents per unit of train-running distance, has also dropped from 0.11 to 0.01, an improvement of approximately 91 percent indicating a structurally safer railway system.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He said this places Indian Railways firmly on the trajectory of leading international peers, achieved while operating one of the world\u2019s most complex railway networks where passenger, freight, suburban and express services share the same corridors. The Union Minister was categorical that this has been achieved while simultaneously scaling operations: more trains, more passengers, more distance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Union Minister was emphatic by saying what matters most are the lives saved. He added that the scale of fatality reduction signals a system increasingly designed to prevent catastrophic failure, rather than merely respond to it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Financial Commitment: Safety Spending as a Non-Negotiable<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Shri Vaishnaw underscored that the safety transformation did not happen through intent alone\u2026<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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