By IANS,
Mathura/New Delhi: At least 23 people were killed when a speeding train rammed into a stationary passenger train from behind in the Uttar Pradesh city of Mathura early Wednesday in the worst rail disaster this year.
The accident took place about 55 km from the Taj Mahal city of Agra. Around 20 people were in hospital with multiple injuries. Some were in serious condition.
Tragedy struck when the diesel engine of the Goa Express crashed into the stationary Mewar Express train’s last coach that was reserved for women as well as the disabled, killing many instantly.
Both trains were proceeding to New Delhi. The Goa Express was coming from Goa and the Mewar Express from Rajasthan.
Shocked survivors later complained that the railway authorities were nowhere in sight to rescue the trapped passengers and that the first help came from villagers and Indian soldiers stationed nearby.
Eventually, the rescue and relief operations lasted about seven hours, an agonizing period when rescuers found 19 mangled bodies. The others died in hospitals.
One survivor complained that some of the dead would have alive if they had got timely help.
The reason for the tragedy was not clear. One railway official blamed the Goa Express driver for ignoring a signal to stop. However, Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee said the pulling of emergency chain in Mewar Express may have caused it to make a sudden halt, leading to the accident.
Saurabh Jain, a survivor, said that after the accident took place at around 4.50 a.m., people felt electric shocks coming from compartments at the rear of the train. “But the authorities reacted very late.”
“We requested for help. But not a single policeman was seen at the site of the accident till 6 a.m.”
Railway official Rajesh Kumar said: “Twenty-three deaths have been confirmed. The condition of some of the injured is critical.”
Some people from the Goa Express were later accommodated in the Mewar Express that made its way to New Delhi. Buses were also arranged to ferry the passengers to Delhi, about 150 km away.
The injured were taken to four hospitals in Mathura but many passengers were angry with the authorities.
Seema, a survivor who suffered leg injuries, was in shock. “Initially it was only the villagers who helped us. I suffered leg injuries. Now I am going to Haridwar with my husband,” she said, tears rolling down her face.
“Help reached the spot only after three hours of the accident and till then there was no one to take care of us. There was complete chaos outside the train with several rumours floating around. Some said the train had derailed,” said Bhaskaran, a resident of Udaipur who came for a religious programme with a group of 32 people.
Soldiers were quick to come to the rescue of the rail passengers.
“We used specialist equipment like electric power saws, steel cutters, portable welding sets as well as heavy lift recovery vehicles. The teams started relief operations at 7 a.m. and extracted over 20 civilians within two hours,” a senior army official said.
Railway Minister Banerjee announced a compensation of Rs.500,000 for the families of the deceased. Uttar Pradesh Agriculture Minister Laxminarain Choudhry announced a compensation of Rs.10 lakh and a job for the families of the dead.
The accident affected train traffic between New Delhi and both western and southern India. Several trains were diverted. The Intercity Express from Agra to Hazrat Nizamuddin in Delhi was cancelled.