New Delhi, July 22: There has been a sharp decline in train accidents in the country over the last 12 years as a result of the high priority being accorded to safety on Indian Railways.

The annual budgetary allocation for safety has shot up more than three-fold from Rs 39,200 crore in 2013-14 to Rs 1,20,389 crore in 2026-27, the Centre told the Parliament on Wednesday.

The number of “consequential accidents” came down from 135 in 2014-15 to 16 in 2025-26 and only two accidents have been reported in 2026-27 till June this year, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said in a written reply to a query in the Lok Sabha.

“The causes of the accidents that took place over Indian Railways broadly include track defects, locomotive or coach defects, equipment failures, human errors, etc. Rail safety has now been strengthened through modern technology, infrastructure and enhanced maintenance. As many as 6,671 stations have been equipped with electronic interlocking and complete track circuiting while 10,395 level crossing gates have also been brought under the interlocking system to minimise human errors,” Union Minister Vaishnaw noted.

Complete track circuiting of these railway stations has been undertaken to enhance safety by verification of track occupancy by electrical means.

Detailed instructions on issues related with safety of signalling, for example, mandatory correspondence check, alteration work protocol, preparation of completion drawing, etc. have been issued.

The Indian Railways has added 36,429 track kilometres during 2014–26, which is more than 2.5 times higher than 2004–14 which has enhanced track safety.

Modernisation of rolling stock and maintenance practices strengthens safety, with LHB coach production rising more than 21 times to 49,366 during 2014–26 and weld failures reduced by 93 per cent.

The indigenously developed Kavach 4.0 safety system has been successfully commissioned on 2,490 route kilometres covering the high-density Delhi–Mumbai and Delhi–Howrah routes.

Kavach implementation work is also under progress on 21,937 route kilometres, with installation being taken up on 7,435 locomotives and 1,200 EMU/MEMU trains.

The amount utilised for Kavach works so far up to June 2026 is Rs 3874.9 crore.

The allocation of funds during the year 2026-27 is Rs 2066.24 crore.

Requisite funds are made available as per the progress of works.

In reply to another query, Union Minister Vaishnaw said that at present, recruitment against 1,61,889 vacancies of non-gazetted personnel has been taken up on Indian Railways as per annual calendar 2024, 2025 and 2026.

During January to December 2024, ten Centralised Employment Notifications for 92,116 vacancies were notified for filling up of posts of Assistant Loco Pilots, technicians, Sub-Inspectors, Constables in Railway Protection Force (RPF), Junior Engineers, Depot Material Superintendent, Chemical and Metallurgical Assistant, Paramedical Categories, Non-Technical Popular Categories (Graduate), Non-Technical Popular Categories (Under-Graduate), Ministerial and Isolated Categories and Level-1 categories such as Assistants, Track Maintainers and Pointsman.

First stage/Single stage Computer Based Tests for 92,116 posts have been completed.

“During 2026-2027 (up to June 30, 2026) panels for more than 3,300 candidates for various posts, including the posts of Technicians, Junior Engineers, Paramedical Categories, Ministerial and Isolated categories and Assistant Loco Pilots have been finalised. Majority of them are in safety categories,” Union Minister added.

Mumbai, July 22: The Indian equity markets posted notable losses early on Wednesday, weighed down by the US-Iran conflict and rising Brent crude prices.

Sensex lost 371 points, or 0.48 per cent, to reach 77,097 in morning trade while Nifty shed 106 points, or 0.44 per cent, to reach 24,081.

Main broad-cap indices performed in line with the benchmark indices, as the Nifty Midcap 100 lost 0.16 per cent, and the Nifty Smallcap 100 dipped 0.33 per cent.

Sectoral indices on NSE traded mostly in red, led by losses of Nifty pharma and mid small healthcare, down 0.99 per cent and 0.93 per cent, respectively, amid the fresh US phased tariff plan on generic drugs. Nifty PSU bank also logged strong losses, down 0.86 per cent.

Auto was the major gainer, up 0.79 per cent. FMCG, Metal and consumer gainers were the only other gainers, adding 0.09 to 0.15 per cent.

“The early automobile Q1 numbers are impressive, exports and management commentary reflect optimism. The price correction in a few leading banks is apparently over. Rupee is likely to remain stable buoyed by positive news on the dollar flows from FCNR deposits which has crossed $20 billion now. The inflows are likely to gather momentum, going forward,” an analyst said.

Weakening of the chip trade and sharp correction in markets like South Korea during the last one month are making India relatively stable and attractive from the valuation perspective, he added

In the previous session, the Nifty 50 extended its corrective phase for the second consecutive day, declining 0.2 per cent and closing below the 24,200 mark. The index largely traded within the previous session’s range, reflecting indecisiveness among market participants, analysts noted.

The immediate support for Nifty is placed at 24,100, followed by 24,000 level. On the upside, the 24,300–24,400 zone remains a key hurdle for the bulls, market participants said.

Meanwhile, Asian markets traded higher in early deals, tracking technology-led gains on Wall Street as investors awaited earnings from major US technology companies.

In Asian markets, China’s Shanghai index gained 0.35 per cent, and Shenzhen added 0.36 per cent, Japan’s Nikkei advanced 1.93 per cent, and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index eased 0.69 per cent. South Korea’s Kospi added 4.31 per cent.

The US markets ended in green overnight as Nasdaq gained 1.29 per cent. The S&P 500 advanced 0.89 per cent, and the Dow Jones added 0.74 per cent.

On July 21, foreign institutional investors (FIIs) net bought equities worth Rs 1,650 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) net sold equities worth Rs 656 crore.

Mumbai, July 21: Gold and silver prices traded higher on Tuesday, tracking gains in global bullion markets as easing crude oil prices and persistent geopolitical tensions in the Middle East boosted demand for safe-haven assets.

On the Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX), gold futures for August delivery climbed as much as 1.03 per cent or Rs 1,460 to touch an intraday high of Rs 1,42,848 per 10 grams at around 11:20 am. Meanwhile, silver futures for September delivery rose 1.54 per cent or Rs 3,380 to an intraday high of Rs 2,21,780 per kg.

At the last count, the yellow metal was trading at Rs 1,42,741, up Rs 1,353 or 0.96 per cent after touching an intraday low of Rs 1,42,157.

On the other hand, the white metal at Rs 2,21,402, gaining Rs 3,002 or 1.37 per cent after hitting a session low of Rs 2,19,200 so far.

Earlier in the day, gold and silver opened at Rs 1,42,386 per 10 grams and Rs 2,19,200 per kg, respectively, on the commodity exchange.

The rally in domestic bullion prices mirrored global trends after Brent crude slipped below the $90-a-barrel mark amid reports of diplomatic efforts to de-escalate the conflict in the Middle East.

International gold prices also moved higher after oil prices retreated following reports that the US had ended its latest round of airstrikes targeting Iran.

The latest developments follow a sharp rally in crude oil prices that briefly pushed Brent above the $90-a-barrel level, fuelling concerns over higher global inflation and the possibility of further monetary tightening by major central banks, including the US Federal Reserve.

According to the commodity market experts, bullion prices have remained volatile in recent weeks as investors weigh geopolitical risks against expectations for the US Federal Reserve’s interest rate path.

Higher interest rates generally reduce the appeal of non-yielding assets such as gold by increasing the opportunity cost of holding them, they added.

They further noted that persistent geopolitical uncertainty has continued to support safe-haven demand, offsetting pressure from a stronger US dollar.