VINOD BHAT
Delhi, Dec 05:
Technological improvements in Indian Railways (IR) are a continuous process. Some of the Artificial Intelligence based predictive maintenance applications are as follows:
Pilot initiatives involving AI-driven predictive maintenance of the Signalling system are being undertaken over Indian Railways at some of the stations to evaluate its efficacy. Measurable outcomes include Standard Failure and Prediction Logics and Alerts mechanism to be derived from trial results at these stations.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) enabled Intrusion Detection System (IDS) using Distributed Acoustic System (DAS) for detecting presence of elephants on Railway tracks is implemented in 141 RKms section on NF Railway and further tenders have been awarded for 981 RKms section of Indian Railways. The system is designed to generate alerts for loco pilots, station masters and Control Room about the movement of elephants in proximity of railway tracks, for taking timely preventive action.
IR has adopted advanced/improved technologies like Online Monitoring of Rolling Stock System (OMRS), Wheel Impact Load Detector (WILD) for predictive maintenance of Rolling stock.
A Memorandum of Understanding has been signed between IR and Dedicated Freight Corridor Corporation of India Limited (DFCCIL) in July 2025 for induction of Wayside Machine Vision based Inspection System (MVIS). This is an AI/ML driven system for detecting hanging parts or missing components in moving trains.
A Memorandum of Understanding has been signed between IR and Delhi Metro Rail Corporation to induct Automatic Wheel Profile Measurement System (AWPMS). The AWPMS allows for automatic non-contact measurement of train wheel profile ensuring real-time measurement of wheel geometry and wear.
This information was provided by the Union Minister for Railways, Information & Broadcasting and Electronics & Information Technology, Shri Ashwini Vaishnaw, in a written reply to a question in Rajya Sabha today.
