Mathura, October 21
In a pre-dawn mishap, at least 22 persons were killed and as many injured when the Delhi-bound Goa Express, whose driver apparently ignored the signal, rammed into the last bogie of the stationary Mewar Express near here today.

A passenge of the Mewar Express holds his injured kid after the express train arrives in New Delhi on Wednesday — PTI

The Goa Express hit the Udaipur City-Hazrat Nizamuddin Mewar Express from behind between Mathura and Vrindavan around 4.30 am, railway officials said.

Twenty-two persons, including a guard of the Mewar Express and two staff members of the pantry car of the Goa Express, were killed and 22 others injured, they said. Five of the seriously injured were rushed to Delhi by train for treatment.

The unreserved compartment, which was a second class-cum-luggage rake, at the rear of the train bore the brunt of the collision. Two bogies at the rear of the Mewar Express, which was on its way to Delhi, derailed due to the impact of the accident.

The pantry car of the Goa Express also suffered damage.

SSP, Mathura, BD Paulson said 18 persons were rescued from the coach that was packed with women passengers and children. The luggage section of the coach probably prevented heavy casualties, he said.

Railway officials said the driver of the Goa Express was either over-speeding or had jumped the signal.

“Prima facie, the driver of the Goa Express disregarded the signal... Either he did not stop the train at the signal or did not proceed on a cautious speed,” said RD Tripathi, Deputy Regional Manager of the Railways, Agra zone.

UP minister Laxminarain Choudhry said a compensation of Rs 10 lakh would be given to the family of the deceased besides a job.

Several trains had to be temporarily diverted due to the mishap. The track was cleared around 2 pm for normal traffic with the help of a large number of railway workers. Heavy machinery was used to remove the damaged and derailed bogies. About 150 Army personnel assisted the railway staff in clearing the track.

The Mewar Express, from which the damaged bogie was detached, left for Delhi with the passengers about five hours after the accident. Some of the passengers were also accommodated in buses.

All trapped passengers have been extricated, said Sri Prakash, a member (traffic) of the Railway Board. — PTI

List of injured

According to ADG (Law and Order) Brij Lal only one of the 22 dead passengers has been identified so far. She is 13-year-old Priya, daughter of Roshan, a resident of Ballabhgarh in Haryana. The police are still trying to establish the identity of the remaining 21 dead.

The injured who have been identified are: Banas (30), Inderjit (10), Maya Devi, Rajkumar (13) and Pankaj (8) (all residents of Karauli in Rajsthan), Anuradha (20) from Agra, Bishan Singh (32) from Delhi, Hemant (4) from Rajasthan, Kanta Meena (32) from Ballabhgarh and Rinku (10) from New Delhi.

Mamata to visit Mathura

KOLKATA: Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee said on Wednesday that she would visit Mathura to take stock of the situation at the site of the train accident that left 22 dead.

“I will be going to Mathura to visit the accident spot and the injured in hospital,” Banerjee said. “I express grief for the loss of lives and injuries caused in the accident,” she said.

Chain-pulling being investigated into

KOLKATA: Investigation was on into the incident of chain-pulling before the Goa Express hit the Mewar Express between Mathura and Vrindavan on Wednesday, Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee said.

“According to a preliminary report, there was an incident of chain-pulling. It is being investigated whether this caused the accident,” Banerjee said. — PTI

Driver taken off duty Railway sources in New Delhi said driver RK Chaturvedi and assistant driver Laxmi Kant of Goa Express have been taken off duty till completion of inquiry into the incident. The medical test carried out on the driver showed that he was not under the influence of alcohol. The official, who visited the spot, did not rule out any technical glitch in the signal system.

Probe ordered Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee has ordered an inquiry into the train accident at Mathura. She has also asked the chairman of the railway board to oversee rescue operations. Acompensation of Rs 5 lakh has been announced for families of the deceased. The Railways has also announced a compensation of Rs 1 lakh to the seriously injured and Rs 10,000 to those with minor injuries. — TNS