Faulty tracks to be replaced on urgent basis

With increasing railway accidents, the national transporter on Thursday decided to replace defective tracks with new ones on priority basis.

Railway Minister Piyush Goyal, who chaired a meeting of top railway officials here to discuss the issue of safety in train operations, also decided that the tracks (rails) earmarked for the use for constructing new lines should be diverted to places/stretches that are prone to accidents, and where replacement is due.

 The meeting also decided to expedite the procurement of new rails on a large scale with a view to complete the construction of new lines in time.

The meeting gained significance as the Railways witnessed three derailments on Thursday.

The national transporter also decided to stop manufacturing the conventional ICF (Integral Coach Factory) design coaches and produce only new design LHB ones.

Linke Hofmann Busch (LHB) coaches are the passenger compartments of the Railways that have been developed by Linke-Hofmann-Busch of Germany.