Southern Railway rewards motorman after confirming signal failure near Ambattur

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Southern Railway has dropped departmental proceedings against motorman K. Karunakaran and rewarded him, after a multi-departmental inquiry confirmed a signal failure between Ambattur and Avadi stations on March 5, 2026.
The motorman had stopped his train despite a clear signal after spotting two trains on the same track, and had initially been held blameworthy for speeding.
The inquiry found the faulty signal (S192) had failed multiple times before and was reset by a technician without following procedure, and that the failure alert buzzer was disconnected.
The Chennai Division has accepted the committee's safety recommendations, though Southern Railway did not respond to questions on the inquiry or the reward.

Implementation of the recommended safety drive and double-lock relay room access in Chennai Division.
Verification and restoration of the disconnected failure buzzer and failsafe MSDAC diagnostic panels.
Whether the Railway Board-level award recommended for the motorman is conferred.

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Named India · Ambattur · Avadi · All India Loco Running Staff Association · Chennai Division · K. Karunakaran · Railway Board · Southern Railway

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