Sealdah-Ajmer Express train derails in Uttar Pradesh, 61 injured

New Delhi: Over 60 passengers were on Wednesday injured when 15 coaches of the Sealdah-Ajmer Express derailed near the Rura railway station in Kanpur rural district, the second rail accident in the region in two months. Rail fracture was suspected to be the most possible reason for the derailment. Two of the 61 injured are said to be in a critical condition.

The accident took place at around 5.30 am when 13 sleeper coaches and two general compartments of the Ajmer-bound train “12987” from Sealdah in West Bengal jumped the track on the bridge over a dry canal.

Union railway minister Suresh Prabhu was quick to announce an ex-gratia of Rs 50,000 for the critically injured and Rs 25,000 for those, who sustained minor injuries in the derailment, An additional ex-gratia of Rs 50,000 for the critically injured and Rs 25,000 for those who sustained minor injuries was announced by Uttar Pradesh chief minister Akhilesh Yadav.

Two of the coaches of the Sealdah-Ajmer Express fell into the canal where there was not much water. This prevented a major calamity, a senior railway official said.

While 42 of the injured were admitted at Mati district hospital in Kanpur, 20 of those seriously injured were undergoing treatment at the Hallet hospital including a six-year-old child, who had suffered head injuries, he said. The railways dismissed reports of any casualty.

Member traffic M. Jamshed told reporters here that normal traffic was likely to be restored on the route, which was one of the busiest by late Thursday evening.

Ruling out fog as the cause of the derailment, he said that prime facie it seems a possible fracture on the track caused the mishap.

An inquiry into the incident has already been ordered. It will be conducted by Commissioner Railway Safety, North zone, Shailesh Kumar. Apart from this, senior officials, including Railway Board Member (Engineering) A.K. Mital and Member (Rolling Stock) Ravindra Gupta, along with other officials, have gone to the accident site to have a first-hand knowledge about the mishap.

The incident comes a month after over 150 people were killed and more than 200 injured when 14 coaches of the Indore-Patna Express derailed in Kanpur Rural district on November 20. While the final report about the mishap is yet to be submitted, initial report had suggested rail fracture as possible reason for it.

Both train mishaps involving derailment of several coaches had occurred in the early morning hours near Kanpur.

Mr Prabhu tweeted he was personally monitoring the situation and all assistance was being provided to those injured. “We are making alternative arrangements for passengers to continue with their onward journey”.

Railway accidents this year:
December 6: Two killed and 10 injured when two coaches and the engine of Guwahati-bound Capital Express from Bihar’s Rajendra Nagar Terminal derails in North Bengal.

November 20: Over 140 people were killed and 180 others injured when 14 coaches of Patna-Indore Express derailed during the early hours in Kanpur Dehat district.

October 5: Jammu Tawi-Pune Jhelum Express derails with 165 Pune-bound passengers.

September 30: The Bhubaneswar-Bhadrak passenger train and a goods train near Kathojodi station at Cuttack collide with each other leading to the deaths of two GRP employees. Twentyseven people were injured in the collision.

September 20: A goods train derails at Karunagappalli Station near Kollam causing disruption in rail traffic between Thiruvananthapuram and Ernakulam sections.

August 28: Twelve coaches of Thiruvananthapuram-Mangalore Express derails near Karukutty station. No casualties were reported in the incident. After the incident, buses and local trains were arranged to ferry the stranded passengers to nearby towns.

July 26: Eight children, not older than the age of 10 years old, were killed when a passenger train hit the school van carrying them at an unmanned railway crossing in eastern UP.

May 6: Seven injured in a side collision between the Chennai Central – Thiruvananthapuram Central superfast and a suburban train near Pattabiram.

May 1: Eight coaches of the Old Delhi-Faizabad Express derail near Hapur in Uttar Pradesh. Twelve passengers were injured while police put the number between 40 and 50. No death was reported.

February 5: At least ten people injured after several coaches of the Kanyakumari-Bangalore Island Express derail near Patchur in Vellore district of Tamil Nadu.