At least 24 killed, 300 rescued after trains derail in India

President Pranab Mukherjee has condoled the loss of lives and wished “speedy recovery” to all those injured in the twin train accidents that took place in Madhya Pradesh last night.

Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu, however, told Parliament that 12 passengers were killed. However, Divisional Railway Manager (DRM) Bhopal, Alok Kumar said, “11 passengers of Janata Express and one from Kamayani Express were found dead”. Ajmer Hyderabad Express and Sriganganagar Nanded Express have also been diverted.

Two passenger trains jumped off slippery tracks on a bridge near a rain-swollen river in central India, killing at least 24 people as two coaches hurled through mud and rested on one side at an embankment, officials said Wednesday.

The head of the railway board, A.K. Mittal, told reporters a flash flood struck the area just minutes before the trains came through, disturbing the tracks.

Stating that the accident is the symptom of the deep-rooted cancer in the railway system, former Railways Minister Dinesh Trivedi said, “This is totally unacceptable”. “We are checking all carriages to look for trapped passengers”, said ministry spokesman Anil Saxena.

Mumbai: Soon after several coaches of Kamayani Express followed by Janata Express derailment, help desk were set up at major railway station in Mumbai for easy dissemination of information. “A lot of the coaches had handed however the previous few carriages have been derailed“, Saksena stated. He said he along with his junior minister will be “going personally” to the accident site to review relief and rescue operations. Some bogies have fallen into the Machak river. He also assured that authorities on the ground are doing everything possible.

Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan has said the rail mishap in Harda district appeared to have been caused by heavy rains which led to the base of the track getting washed away, resulting in snapping of the overhead contact of the engine.

India’s railway network, one of the world’s largest, is still the main form of long-distance travel in the vast country, but it is poorly funded and deadly accidents are frequent.

The two officers were constantly attending phone calls, most of which were to determine the timing of the trains.