Indian Railways in partnership with IIT Kanpur has launched a real-time rail navigation project known as SIMRAN through which passengers can track the exact location and speed of a train.

Project SIMRAN, heralds a new era of using ICT for monitoring railway operations. In order to rectify the problem of provision of inaccurate train information to passengers at most railway inquiry counters across the country, Indian Railways has decided to launch a satellite-based train tracking system . Under this system, a GPS device installed on the train helps in tracking down the exact location and speed of the train and transfers it to the central railway server. This information is then displayed on station and train passenger display panels . Passengers can also know the exact position of a train by sending an SMS to a designated number or by logging on to the website http://www.simran.in .

Compared to the earlier system of manual collection of data, this new railway tracking system provides actual train running information accurately. Currently in its first phase, SIMRAN covers only a few trains including some Rajdhani and Shatabdi routes, however there are plans to scale up the initiative for tracking all trains across India.

Project SIMRAN by providing real time train running information is addressing a vital gap in monitoring the operation of Indian Railways and also has the potential of tremendously increasing passenger/public satisfaction.

This case study was published in March 2012.

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