68 ‘consequential’ train accidents per year in last decade

Shubhadeep Choudhury

New Delhi, June 18

Sixty-eight (68) “consequential” train accidents had taken place annually during the 10 years (2014-24) of the Modi regime. In the previous decade ruled by the UPA, the average number of consequential train accidents was 171 per year, Railway Ministry sources said today.

‘Consequential’ train accident

A “consequential” train accident, according to the Indian Railways, includes those with serious repercussions, including injuries, loss of life, rail traffic disruption and damage to railway property.

A “consequential” train accident, according to the Indian Railways, includes those with serious repercussions, including injuries, loss of life, rail traffic disruption and damage to railway property. The Kanchanjunga Express accident on Monday — that led to the loss of 10 lives — has been attracting a lot of criticism from the opposition parties who have been accusing the government of paying attention only to fancy projects like the Vande Bharat Express and neglecting basic safety issues.

The Congress today demanded resignation of Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw for the train accident and said he had no moral right to continue as a Minister. “Unless you fix responsibility, how do you expect the government to run,” Congress spokesperson Supriya Shrinate said in a press conference here today.

Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge asked the government that why work for installation of the anti-collision device ‘Kavach’ was not expedited after the Balasore train tragedy last June that claimed the lives of 296 persons. Railway Ministry sources, however, claimed that there has been a steep decline in the number of consequential train accidents. While 473 “consequential” train accidents took place in 2000-01, only 40 such train accidents took place in 2022-23, they said.

They also added that ‘Kavach’, the anti-collision device that was certified in 2019, is a very complex system. It involves six major sub-systems. “At this point of time, the work is progressing on 3,000 km route,” the sources said.