Indian Railways to install surveillance CCTV cameras on stations by January 2023

The first phase of the Indian Railways' effort to install video surveillance systems at stations across the nation will be finished by January 2023. The program's implementing organisation is RailTel. It was stated that the first phase of the project, which would include significant stations of categories A1, A, B, and C numbering 756, is expected to be finished by January 2023. It was also stated that the second phase will cover the remaining stations.  

"In a bid to enhance security at railway stations which are major hubs of transportation, the railways is in the process of installing Internet Protocol (IP) based Video Surveillance System (VSS) at stations, that is, waiting for halls, reservation counters, parking areas, main entrance/exit, platforms, foot over bridges and booking offices," the statement said.

The Ministry of Railways had approved the project under Nirbhaya funds. "We need to rapidly absorb new technology in railways, be it for rolling stock, construction, safety, cyber security, or in situations where there is a human interface," Railways Minister Ashwani Vaishnaw said.

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CCTV cameras of stations and video feeds will be monitored at three levels to ensure enhanced safety and security at railway premises. The system comes with Artificial Intelligence (AI) enabled Video Analytics Software and Facial Recognition Software, which will help to detect known criminals triggering an alert when they enter station premises.

Network Management System (NMS) has also been provided for monitoring of cameras, server, UPS and switches, which can be viewed from any web browser by authorised personnel, it said.

Four types of IP cameras (Dome type, bullet types, Pan Tilt Zoom type and Ultra HD- 4k) are being installed to ensure maximum coverage of the railway premises.

This will give Railway Protection Force (RPF) officials an extra edge for ensuring enhanced security. The recording of video feeds from CCTV cameras will be stored for 30 days, the statement added.

Talking about the safety features of the system, the railways said it shall act as a tool to respond to situations effectively, aiding faster decision making and act as a great learning for better preparedness to meet any incident and eventualities with some software based application like video analytic and face recognition.

"With the finalisation of the executing agencies, the implementation of the project will be fast-tracked. The most modern software and hardware will be used in this project.

"This VSS system will be IP based and will have a network of CCTV cameras. These CCTVs are being networked on optical fiber cable, and the video feed of the cameras will be displayed not only at local RPF posts but also at a centralised CCTV control room at divisional and zonal level," said Aruna Singh, Chairman and Managing Director, RailTel.

With inputs from PTI