Indian Railways safety improves significantly in past decade, says PM Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said Indian Railways has improved safety significantly through reforms and technology. Train accidents have dropped sharply over the past decade, with enhanced funding and policy focus contributing to a safer railway system for millions of passengers

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday highlighted that Indian Railways has undergone a fundamental shift and is setting new benchmarks through sustained reforms and technology.

In this context, he shared an article written by Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on how the safety ecosystem of Indian Railways has been transformed in the past decade through clear policy, the induction of modern technology and continuous injection of funds.

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The Prime Minister’s Office posted on X: “The Indian Railway ecosystem has undergone a fundamental shift and the results are right in front of us. Union Minister AshwiniVaishnaw writes how this sector is setting new benchmarks through sustained reforms and technology”.

For many of these passengers, a railway journey is not a choice but a necessity. In a system that carries such volumes across vast distances, safety is not a technical metric. It is a matter of public trust, it added.

The article highlights that during PM Modi’s first term in office, a clear message was given that Indian Railways would place “Safety First”. In pursuit of this goal the organisation has pursued a tech-led, consistently-funded transformation of its safety ecosystem.

Consequently, the train accident rate has come down sharply in the country. In 2014-15, Indian Railways recorded 135 such accidents which has come down to 16 in 2025-26, a reduction of 89 per cent. The decline in the number of accidents has taken place even as the number of train operations and passenger volumes has gone up.

During this period, the consequential accident index, which measures accidents per unit of train running distance has dropped from 0.11 to 0.01, indicating a system far safer for every kilometre run.

Also in 2014-15, rail accidents claimed 292 lives while in 2025-26, only 16 lives were lost in 16 accidents that took place.

Emphasising the importance that Indian Railways occupies in the lives of the people, the minister wrote: “Every morning, as India wakes up, its railways are already in motion. More than two crore passengers step onto the country’s trains each day, from office-goers, students, and migrant workers to families and soldiers.”