Howrah-Mumbai Mail derails in Jharkhand; 2 killed, 20 injured
Kolkata: Two persons were killed and at least 20 injured, including several from Bengal, after the 12810 Howrah-Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT) Mumbai Mail derailed near Barabamboo station in the Chakradharpur Division of the South Eastern Railway (SER) early Tuesday morning.
Two rescue teams were sent from Purulia to the accident site. One team, led by the Additional District Magistrate (ADM) General Adityavikram Mohan Hirani and ADM Land Revenue Rajesh Rathod, and the other led by the Additional Superintendent of Police (Addl. SP) Operations Jadhawar Avinash Bhimrao.
Sources said the Mumbai Mail left Howrah railway station on Monday evening. Around 3:45 am on Tuesday, while passing through the Barabamboo area in Chakradharpur, Jharkhand, 18 coaches of the train, including 16 passenger coaches, one pantry car, and one power supply coach, derailed.
Unconfirmed sources claimed that a few wagons of a goods train derailed at the same spot and one of its wagons fell on the tracks on which the Mumbai Mail was coming. The Mumbai Mail collided with the wagon and subsequently derailed. However, SER officials are yet to ascertain the cause of the derailment. According to SER, following the derailment, rescue operations started and medical teams were sent to the spot. The National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) was also called in for the rescue operation. Injured passengers were shifted to Chakradharpur Railway Hospital and CHC Khutpani. Two people who were trapped inside a coach were rescued by cutting the coach using gas cutters. They were taken to a hospital where they were declared dead. The deceased passengers, P Bikash and Ajit Kumar Samal, were both from Odisha’s Rourkela.
For the other passengers, a special bus service was arranged to transport them from the derailment site. A special train was arranged to carry the stranded passengers to Chakradharpur railway station.
SER also arranged a special train from Chakradharpur to CSMT Mumbai for the passengers of the ill-fated train. The Ministry of Railways has already announced ex-gratia for the kin of deceased passengers and for the injured passengers. On the X handle of the ministry, it was posted: “The Ministry of Railways announces ex gratia of ₹10 lakh to the family of deceased, ₹5 lakh for grievous injuries, and ₹1 lakh for simple injuries in the train 12810 derailment.”
Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren directed officials to extend all possible cooperation to the railways for relief work. He also announced ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakh each to the kin of the deceased in the train accident and Rs 50,000 each to those injured.
The railways also announced an inquiry into the train accident, an SER official said.
Several helpline numbers have been a tivated at various railway stations including Howrah, Kharagpur, Tatanagar, Jharsuguda, Rourkela, Chakradharpur, along with several railway stations in Maharashtra.
The SER cancelled 11 express and passenger trains due to the accident, including Howrah-Titlagarh-Kantabanji Express, Kharagpur-Jhargram-Dhanbad Express, Howrah-Barbil-Howrah Jan Shatabdi Express, Tatanagar-Itwari Express, and Shalimar-LTT Express.
Six other trains were either short-terminated or diverted, the official said.
This is the seventh train accident that took place this year, including about three derailments. Among the accidents, one happened in Bengal on June 17 in Phansidewa, where the Kanchenjunga Express and a freight train collided with each other. It resulted in the death of 10 people and injured at least 40.
