New Delhi: The Union Ministry of Railways on Monday shared a video showing a glimpse of the training received by locomotive pilots, who are professionals responsible for operating and driving trains and ensuring that they are properly maintained throughout the whole journey.


In the video, a person is seen receiving hands-on training inside a Loco Simulator at Diesel Shed, Hubballi, South Western Railway. The railway ministry described the exercise as a 'realistic, life-like simulation Loco Operation Training'. These training programs give loco pilots a broad foundation in general rail yard operations.






The Diesel Shed in Hubbali, which is a city in Karnataka, was established in June 1999, by imbibing various features of diesel sheds across the globe. 


What Is Diesel Shed?


In order to ferry heavy goods in steep regions, locomotives (locos) needed a technology upgrade. Therefore, state-of-the-art microprocessor-controlled locos manufactured by American corporation General Motors were introduced in India, under the concept of technology transfer to the Indian Railways. The Diesel Loco Shed became the first unit to undertake the production and maintenance of these locos. 


Who Are Loco Pilots?


Locomotive pilots, also called loco pilots, are employees of the Indian Railways who perform a variety of tasks to ensure the safety and security of passengers and goods. Working in tandem with train and station managers, loco pilots check the train route, maximum train speed, appropriate braking power, safety parameters, and assess risks. Loco pilots also undertake the task of repairing and maintaining the basic engine hardware in an energy situation, and monitor risks associated with journeys and the security of passengers. 


Training Received In The Simulator


The railway ministry claims that the Loco Operation Training helps improve the skills of loco pilots, and boosts their confidence for secure and proficient operations. 


The GM Loco Simulator was commissioned in October 2005 to impart more meaningful training to loco pilots and to improve their loco handling skills in difficult working situations, according to the South Western Railway. The severity of slack action and the resultant shock on couplers become very high as the length and tonnage of a train increases. A coupler is a mechanism for connecting railway cars in a train. Slack action in railroading is the amount of free movement of one car before it transmits its motion to an adjoining coupled car. 


Since increases in length and tonnage cause the severity of slack action and resultant shock on couplers to become very high, it becomes necessary for loco pilots to acquire more skills to control in-train forces caused by the slack action, and also know the train behaviour on different track profiles.


The Simulator helps measure the performance of loco pilots and identify their drawbacks in train-handling methods. Consequently, this helps address the flaws of the loco pilots in a systematic manner, and allows them to increase their confidence in proper train-handling. Thus, safe and efficient train operation is achieved. 


According to South Western Railway, a total of 9858 running staff have been trained from November 2005 to February 28, 2022. The staff includes 590 loco inspectors, 5,315 loco pilots, and 3,953 assistant loco pilots