Rajdhani Express derails in Bihar; 5 feared dead, Maoist role ruled out
New Delhi: A passenger train headed from New Delhi to Assam derailed early this morning in Bihar, killing five people.
Initially, officials said an explosion on the tracks may have caused the accident, which left 12 carriages of the Rajdhani Express toppled over near the Chapra station, 75 kilometres from the state capital of Patna.
"Prima facie, it appears to be a case of sabotage," Railway Board chairman Arunendra Kumar told the Press Trust of India (PTI) news agency. "There was a blast on the track, which could have caused the derailment."
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi condoled the loss of lives and said that the Centre would cooperate.
PM is in touch with the Railway Minister, who updated the PM on the relief work at the accident site-PMO
— ANI (@ANI_news) June 25, 2014Railway Minister Sadananda Gowda said there was no confirmation about what caused the derailment. Maoist rebels had earlier called for a strike in the area to protest against the security forces.
"As far as the Rajdhani Express is concerned, we practically don't have much news about the cause of derailment (but) of course there was a bandh (shutdown) call given by Maoists," he told reporters.
Officials acknowledged that a mandatory precaution had been ignored. In areas where the Naxals are active, popular passenger trains like Shatabdi and the Rajdhani Express are meant to be preceded by "a pilot engine" which checks that the tracks are safe.
For the train that derailed, this security check was not conducted. "We can't escort every train," said Madhuresh Kumar, General Manager, East Central Railway.
Railway minister Sadananda Gowda and Minister of State for Railway Manoj Sinha have rushed to the site along with Railway Board Member Traffic, D P Pandey and Member Mechanical, Alok Johri.
Following are the helpline numbers established by the railways after the Rajdhani Express accident:
New Delhi: 011-23342954, 23341074
Chhapra: 06512-43409
Hajipur: 06224-272230
Muzaffarpur: 0621-2213034
Dibrugarh: 0373-2300131
Very unfortunate incident,Commissioner of railway safety will inquire the matter-Sadanand Gowda,Railway Minister on Dibrugarh Rajdhani
— ANI (@ANI_news) June 25, 2014Senior rail officials are at the site,have arranged another train for passengers-Sadanand Gowda,Rail minister pic.twitter.com/DOUgmnJL6r
— ANI (@ANI_news) June 25, 2014Dibrugarh Rajdhani derails : BJP leader and Chhapra MP Rajiv Pratap Rudy at the accident site pic.twitter.com/ptcdt6qcBj
— ANI (@ANI_news) June 25, 2014Safety should be top priority,hope the rail minister takes quick and strict action-Mallikarjun Kharge pic.twitter.com/9WI6kqQTj3
— ANI (@ANI_news) June 25, 2014