This new tracking system is based on Satellite Imaging for Rail Navigation (SIMRAN) and has been developed jointly by the Ministry of Railways’ Research arm namely Research, Design and Standards Organization (RDSO), Lucknow and noted engineering institute, IIT, Kanpur.

Union Minister of Railways, Shri Dinesh Trivedi inaugurated this facility during the Economic Editors’ Conference.
The trains covered for this first phase are following trains:

Howrah - N Delhi Rajdhani
N Delhi - Howrah Rajdhani
Howrah - N Delhi Rajdhani
N Delhi - Howrah Rajdhani
Sealdah - N Delhi Rajdhani
N Delhi - Sealdah Rajdhani
Mumbai Central - N Delhi Rajdhani
N Delhi - Mumbai Central Rajdhani
Mumbai Central - Nizamuddin A K Rajdhani
Nizamuddin - Mumbai Central A K Rajdhani
Lucknow - N Delhi Shatabdi
N Delhi - Lucknow Shatabdi

This facility will provide accurate train running information on a click of button or through SMS and will overcome limitations of the existing train information dissemination through 139 which is mainly dependent on manual collection and feeding.

RTIS system deployed in the trains mentioned above will provide the following information to public/passengers:

(i)      Train locations.
(ii)    Train running position (i.e. whether train is running on time or if   running late and by how much. 
(iii)    Train location with respect to next stopping station in terms of kms.

This information will be available on website http://www.simran.in

Public may also get the train running information through SMS by sending a text message “ train number” to mobile number 09415139139. 
An example of a typical message received by passenger say for train number 12004, a Shatabdi Exp. train, is as follows:

      “On 19/10/2011 10:00, Train 12004 N Delhi – Lucknow Shat. is running at 129 kmph near Bharthana, 126 km from KANPUR CENTRAL. Presently Right on time”.

The above message is actual reply received to a SMS query.

Ministry of Railways has decided to implement RTIS to track all trains, passenger as well as freight trains in a phase manner.  For this, a work has been approved in Railway Budget 2011-12 at a cost of Rs. 110.0 crore.  The project is likely to be completed by December 2012.

City.Mobi

Also in India today, City.Mobi is celebrating the success of its new guide to New Delhi.

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