New Delhi: At least seven people died and 30 were injured on Sunday after the Delhi-bound Seemanchal Express derailed in Vaishali district of Bihar, about 30km away from state capital Patna.
Railway officials said the accident took place at 3:58 am in Sahadai Buzurg and eleven coaches derailed. Three coaches overturned and have been completely damaged. The superfast train from Jogbani in Bihar to Delhi's Anand Vihar Terminal was running at full speed when the accident took place, they added.
One general coach, one AC coach B3, three sleeper coaches - S8, S9, S10 - and six more coaches have derailed, said East Central Railway spokesperson Rajesh Kumar. The rescue operation has been completed, officials said.
Six of the deceased have been identified as Ilcha Devi (66), Indira Devi (60), Shamsuddin Alam (26), Ansar Alam (19), Shaida Khatoon (40), Sudarshan Das (60), the Government Railway Police (GRP) said. Of the 30 injured, three were hurt grievously.
The injured were rushed to a hospital , where the doctors referred the seriously wounded to Muzaffarpur and Patna. Teams of doctors have also rushed from Sonepur and Barauni to the accident site, officials said.
Three coaches overturned and have been completely damaged. Locals rushed to the accident site to help in the rescue operations.
"As of now, it is not clear whether the derailment of the 12487 Jogbani-Anand Vihar Seemanchal Express was caused by a human error or a technical fault. This would be investigated once the rescue operations are complete and the affected Barauni-Bachhwara-Hajipur single line gets cleared," he said.
“Prima facie it appears that rail fracture was the cause of the accident," he added.
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, who expressed deep condolences over the deaths, said, "The district magistrate and the superintendent of police have rushed to the spot and are overseeing the relief work in coordination with the Railways."
The Railways have issued helpline numbers - Sonpur 06158221645, Hajipur 06224272230 and Barauni 06279232222.
The Railways has announced that it would give compensation of Rs 5 lakh each to the kin of every deceased, Rs 1 lakh to the grievously injured and Rs 50,000 to those who suffered minor injuries. All medical expenses will also be borne by Railways, a tweet from Piyush Goyal’s office said. The Bihar government has also announced compensation of Rs 4 lakh each to the kin of every deceased and Rs 50,000 to the injured.
The unaffected 12 coaches of the train are being moved to Hajipur, where additional coaches will be attached and the train will move for Delhi, officials said.
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