As many as 18 coaches of a Mumbai-bound train traveling from Howrah derailed in Jharkhand on July 30, killing two people and injuring 20 others.
The 12810 Howrah-Mumbai Mail via Nagpur derailed near Badabamboo, around 80 km from Jamshedpur at around 3.45 am. Soon after the derailment, relief and relief teams were rushed to the spot, officials said.
"Two people were killed and 20 injured as 18 coaches of Howrah-Mumbai Mail derailed near Barabamboo. Rescue operations are on and an NDRF team is rushing to the spot," West Singhbhum Deputy Commissioner Kuldeep Chaudhary, who is camping at the accident site, told news agency PTI.
The cause of the derailment is being ascertained. Reportedly, a goods train had also derailed nearby. However, it is not clear whether the two accidents occurred simultaneously.
Of the 18 coaches that derailed, 16 were passenger coaches, one power car and one pantry car, the official said. The mishap has caused several trains on the route to be canceled or diverted.
The incident comes just two weeks after eight coaches of the Chandigarh-Dibrugarh Express derailed while en route to Dibrugarh, near Uttar Pradesh's Gonda on July 18. At least four people died and 25 were injured in the accident.
A preliminary investigation into the derailment hinted at faults in the tracks and negligence by the railway engineering section as the primary causes of the unfortunate incident.
Meanwhile, Trinamool Congress leader Sagarika Ghose has slammed the government, saying citizens suffer every day because of neglect of basic safety of trains.
In a post on X, she said Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw is only a "part-time rail minister" and is busy with election management for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in poll-bound states.
Taking a jibe at the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government, Ghose said, "How many more train accidents will it take for the National Disaster Alliance government to wake up?"
"Where is the Rail Minister? Ashwini Vaishnaw is only a part-time rail minister, busy handling BJP's election management in assembly poll-bound states, while the safety of passengers is being shockingly compromised every day," she said.
"Modi only wants to flag off trains in photo ops while citizens suffer daily because of neglect of basic safety on trains. Shameful lack of basic accountability on the part of the Modi government," the TMC leader said.
West Bengal Governor CV Ananda Bose also expressed concern over the Howrah-Mumbai Mail derailment.
He extended condolences to the bereaved families of those killed in the accident and wished speedy recovery for the injured people.
"HG (Honourable Governor) has expressed his condolences to the bereaved families and wishes fast recovery of those injured in the Howrah-CSMT Express train derailment near Jharkhand's Chakradharpur today (July 30)," Bose's office said in a statement on X (formerly Twitter).
An ex-gratia payment of ₹10 lakh were given by the Railways to the kin of the two deceased passengers.
The Railways also paid ₹1 lakh each to the eight people who suffered minor injuries.
The South Eastern Railway (SER) in a statement said that an ex-gratia of ₹10 lakh were granted to the kin of the deceased passengers, P Bikash and Ajit Kumar Samal, both of Odisha's Rourkela.
Among the injured are two women and six men, it said.
