Fearing train journey, survivors take bus for their destinations

Malda: Many of the survivors of the Rangapani accident in which a goods train rammed into the Kanchanjungha Express on its way to Sealdah, reached Malda by bus or other vehicles, discarding the train that had continued the journey. They were so shaken up that they did not want to continue by train.

Some of these passengers arrived at the Malda Town Station. Many alleged a genuine lack of sympathy from the Railway employees at the Malda Station. The survivors stated that accidents were becoming very frequent and that the Railways should immediately take steps to rectify this.

Suman Som from Tripura, a survivor, said: “Many from the train, including us, boarded a bus from Ghoshpukur area near the place of accident and paid double the fare to reach Malda. I was going to Kolkata for my transport business but am now stranded here till the next train to Kolkata. The entire coach shuddered heavily all of a sudden and I saw people running helter skelter. Somehow we managed to jump out and headed for the bus. Here Railway officials seem to have no sympathy for us. Neither they provided us with any place to rest nor provided us with water to drink.” Another passenger, Mithun Haldar of Birbhum, said: “I was in the upper berth at the time of the accident and felt a huge tremble which caused pain in my body. Assuming an accident or derailment, I quickly got off the train and ran for life. After changing 2 or 3 vehicles, I reached Malda. I desperately want to reach home.”

Meanwhile, Caleb Subba, 37-year-old, Sub-Inspector of Excise department from Gorubathan in Kalimpong, in-charge of the Manikchak died in the train accident while returning to Malda to join his service after a leave.