The Hindu : Front Page : 38 killed as trains collide in Punjab

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Dec 15, 2004

Front Page

Front Page

38 killed as trains collide in Punjab

By Sarabjit Pandher

CHANDIGARH, DEC. 14. At least 38 persons, including 11 women and a child, were killed and about 200 were injured when the Ahmedabad-bound 9112 dn Jammu Tawi Express collided with 1 JMP Jalandhar-Pathankot Diesel Multiple Unit (DMU) passenger train near Mukerian town of Hoshiarpur district in Punjab this afternoon.

There were conflicting figures about the toll. The Railways Minister, Lalu Prasad, who rushed to the spot put the figure at 31. However, the Punjab Chief Minister, Amarinder Singh, who earlier informed the Assembly that the toll was 50 later said 34 people were killed and 43 injured.

The local district administration put the toll at 35 and the Army at 32.

Drivers killed

A Railways spokesman told reporters at the spot that the drivers of both trains were among those killed. Four compartments, including three bogeys from the DMU, capsized along with the engines.

Heartrending scenes were witnessed with some passengers looking desperately for those who travelled with them.

Witnesses said that people from the nearest Mansar village and from Bangar and Mirthala villages rushed to the spot on hearing the deafening sound of the crash and the passengers' distress cries. Within moments, they organised a rescue and relief operation. By the time any official relief arrived, the locals had mobilised their resources to shift the injured to the Civil Hospital at Mukerian, from where the more seriously injured were taken either to the Army Hospital at Pathankot and other speciality hospitals in Jalandhar and Hoshiarpur.

Later, the Army launched a major relief and rescue operation. About 100 passengers were provided first aid by the Army and local doctors.

While the Railways have not officially disclosed the cause, sources said that it was rather clear that the accident occurred due to "error" or "negligence" by personnel managing the signals at the Chak Kalan and Bangar stations along the single track link on the Jammu-Pathankot-Jalandhar section.

Railways sources said that both trains were on the same track as there was confusion between the officials who were relying on the old-fashioned manual "paper line clearance" system. The "block instrument signalling system" developed a snag on Monday.

District officials said that the toll could have been much higher had the Jammu Tawi Express not been provided with modern carriages which had latest security features.

Railways officials said that identification of the bodies would take more time as most passengers in both trains were travelling on unreserved tickets.

A spokesman of the Ferozepur Division of the Northern Railways said the traffic on the Jalandhar-Pathankot section had been diverted to the Jalandhar-Amritsar-Pathankot section, which again is a single-track link.

Trains on the route will run late till the wreckage was cleared and the track restored.

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