Rail block at Mertala Phaley station after death of two

Kolkata: Angry mob put up a rail block at Mertala Phaley station in the Bandel-Katwa section disrupting the railway services after two persons were killed after being hit by a speeding tractor adjacent to the railway station.

The incident triggered tension in the area. Police said that the two youth Muslim Seikh (28) and Sahidul Seikh (22) were walking along the road when a speeding tractor loaded with sand hit the victims. As the tractor was at a high speed, it also overturned after hitting the victims. Two persons were also injured in the incident.

After seeing the incident, the locals rushed to the spot and took the injured persons to a nearby hospital. The doctors declared them brought dead. Some persons who got trapped beneath the sand-laden truck were later rescued by the local people. They have been undergoing treatment at the hospital.

The locals then started an agitation and ultimately put up a block at the Mertala Phaley railway station at around 11.15 am on Sunday. This had continued for nearly two hours as a result of which, train services in Bandel-Katwa, Howrah-Katwa, Nabadwip-Katwa sections were also affected due to the rail block. Railway police and the senior police officers from the Purba Sthali police station reached the spot and tried to pacify the mob.

The senior police officers urged the agitators to withdraw the railway track as it was affecting the railway services. Initially people threatened to continue the agitation but they lifted the block following the intervention of the senior police officers from the district. The locals alleged that the vehicles ply through the area at a top speed as a result of which accidents have become a regular phenomenon. The locals also said that they had a long-standing demand to set up speed breakers in the area.