MC Exclusive | Indian Railways reviews proposals to phase out manual coupling by 2030

Railway Workers

The death of a railway employee after getting caught between the buffers of an engine and a coach during a shunting operation in Bihar last month has sparked a debate on the use of manual labour in coupling system.

The rail ministry is working on proposals to replace manual labour with automatic system by 2030. "Multiple proposals are being prepared to make the Indian Railways safer for both passengers and the railway staff. Automating the coupling process of trains is being discussed by the Railway Board, Integral Coach Factory and private companies," a senior railway official told Moneycontrol.

He added that while manual coupling will remain a force majeure as no level of automation and technology can completely wipe out the process, multiple proposals are being discussed to significantly phase out manual labour.

Another senior railway official told Moneycontrol that as more Linke-Hofmann-Busch (LHB) coaches and newer trains are being introduced to the Indian Railways and older trains being phased out, the need to carry out manual coupling will be significantly reduced in the next few years.

Emails sent the Railway Ministry remained unanswered till the time of publishing this story.

Some more railways officials told Moneycontrol that according to one of the proposals under consideration, phasing out of manual coupling be done by incentivising the local manufacturing of LHB coaches that would replace the older wagons.

Another proposal involves instalation of Digital Automatic Coupling (DAC) processes across the country. A third proposal under consideration is to improve safety protocol when carrying out manual coupling operations along with upgrading safety equipment used during the process.

The safety of the railway men came under glare after Amar Kumar died while trying to open the coupling of the train when it unexpectedly reversed and trapped him between the carriages in Bihar's Barauni Junction last month. The train driver reportedly fled the scene after the alarm was sounded and failed to take any counteractive measure to reverse the engine or prevent the incident. The hapless porter was crushed to death by the moving train.

The Indian Railways ordered an inquiry to determine whether safety protocols were violated in the incident. A coordination gap between two pointsmen during the manual coupling process was stated as the cause of the accident in the preliminary inquiry. One pointsman reportedly gave the loco driver a wrong signal, leading to the other pointsman working between the locos getting crushed.

At least 13 incidents related to manual coupling took place in 2024 alone, claiming the lives of at least seven railway workers. Some 361 railway workers died on duty between 2019 and November 2023, according to data presented by the Ministry of Railways in the Rajya Sabha.

Earlier this month, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw also informed Parliament that LHB coaches are provided with centre buffer couplers in which coupling takes place without any manual intervention. "ICF coaches, designed and developed during the 1960s, were provided with screw coupling and side buffers, which require manual coupling of coaches. More advanced LHB coaches were introduced by the Indian Railways in 1999-2000." he said.

"These LHB coaches are provided with centre buffer couplers in which coupling takes place without any manual intervention. The Indian Railways has taken up the replacement of ICF coaches by LHB coaches in a phased manner."

Manual coupling is mostly used for screw couplings that are a part of IRS wagons and ICF designed coaches requires one train compartment to remain parked while an individual performs the process. The two trains approach each other and then movable knuckles attached to the compartments rotate around a joint before a pin drops into a waiting slot. Buffers are shock-absorbing pads that are brought into contact with each other when the vehicles are coupled.

This method has been phased out in many countries in favour of automated coupling systems, which use mechanical and digital technology to ensure safer operations. Countries like the US, Russia, and China have adopted these automated systems to eliminate the need for workers to be in hazardous position.

DAC is a key component in the digitisation process of rail freight transport being adopted in increasing the number of trains in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland.

Most trains in Germany use the Albert coupling method, which is a kind of magnetic coupling requiring zero human intervention. In America, a more sophisticated form of centre buffer coupling called the 'Janney coupler' is used that couples and uncouples bogies without manual assistance.

A fully automatic railway coupling method using electric and pneumatic connections and disconnections called the 'Scharfenberg coupler' is commonly used in France.