North Central Railway (NCR) successfully commissioned the Kavach Automatic Train Protection (ATP) System on the Prayagraj (excluding) – Kanpur (excluding) section (190 route km) on Sunday, March 22, 2026.
The system was implemented through Train number 14163. General Manager NCR, Naresh Pal Singh conducted a footplate inspection onboard Train number 14163 from Subedarganj to Manauri station to assess the performance of the Kavach system.
In the first phase, Kavach will be enabled on eight pairs of trains:
14113/14114, 14163/14164, 12307/12308, 12417/12418, 22437/22438, 15003/15004, 20433/20434, and 12403/12404. Additional trains and Vande Bharat will be progressively included said a statement from NCR.
Prior to commissioning, extensive and rigorous trials were successfully conducted. Trial runs included WAP-7 locomotives with 8, 16, and 22 LHB coach configurations, as well as a 20-coach Vande Bharat rake, ensuring system reliability under varied operational conditions.
Passenger trials were also conducted using Train No. 15003/15004 (Chauri Chaura Express), which demonstrated consistent and reliable performance during regular service. More than 20,000 kilometres of passenger trial runs have been successfully completed, with all system validations found satisfactory.
In the next phase Kavach system will be introduced in Ghaziabad – Tundla section for running trains at 160 KMPH as one of the objectives of Mission Raftaar. Senior officers including PHODs, DRM/Prayagraj, and other divisional officers were present on the occasion.
The Kavach system significantly improves safety through the following features:-
• Automatic Train Protection (ATP)
• Prevention of Signal Passing at Danger (SPAD)
• Automatic brake application in case of human error
