The accident occurred when passengers travelling on the 12533 Lucknow-Mumbai Pushpak Express jumped onto adjacent tracks in a hurry fearing a fire and were hit by the Karnataka Express travelling from Bengaluru to Delhi.
अफवाह, चेन पुलिंग और फिर 13 लोगों की मौत…पढ़िए जलगांव हादसे के पीछे की पूरी कहानी
The death toll in the Jalgaon train accident in Maharashtra has risen to 13. Jalgaon Collector Ayush Prasad has given this information. Some passengers who got down on the tracks after rumors of fire in a train in Jalgaon district of North Maharashtra on Wednesday evening were hit by another train coming from the opposite direction on the adjacent track.
The accident occurred when passengers aboard the 12533 Lucknow-Mumbai Pushpak Express hurriedly jumped onto the adjacent tracks fearing fire and were hit by the Karnataka Express going from Bengaluru to Delhi.
Central Railway officials said that 15 other passengers were injured in the accident. The accident took place between Maheji and Pardhade stations near Pachora town in Jalgaon district of North Maharashtra. The accident occurred when someone pulled the chain at around 4:45 pm, after which the Pushpak Express stopped.
However, Dilip Kumar, Executive Director, Information and Publicity Department, Railway Board, denied that the passengers raised the alarm due to any spark or fire inside the coach. Kumar said, “According to the information we have received, no spark or fire was seen in the coach.”
He announced financial assistance of Rs 5 lakh each to the families of the passengers killed in the tragedy. The Railway Safety Commissioner of Central Circle will investigate the cause of the accident. Fadnavis wrote on ‘X’, “In a very unfortunate incident near Pachora in Jalgaon district, people have lost their lives, which is very sad. I pay my tribute to them.”
The Railway Board separately announced an ex-gratia of Rs 1.5 lakh each to the families of the deceased, Rs 50,000 each to the seriously injured and Rs 5,000 for those with minor injuries.
A railway official said the Pushpak Express left the spot in just 15 minutes, while the Karnataka Express was removed within 20 minutes of the accident.
A passenger told a Marathi news channel that when the brakes were applied, some passengers saw sparks coming out of the wheels of the train, after which they panicked. He said, “Some passengers pulled the emergency chain and got down on the track, which led to the accident.”
A senior railway official said that according to preliminary information, sparks and smoke came out due to ‘hot axle’ or ‘brake binding’ (jamming) in a general coach of the Pushpak Express.
Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnav, who is currently in Davos to attend the World Economic Forum, also expressed grief over the accident. A statement issued by the Railway Board said, “Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnav has expressed deep grief over the incident. He took full details of the incident from the Chairman of the Railway Board and other officials and directed for proper treatment of all the injured.”
In a video message from Davos, Switzerland, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said, “Some passengers in the train mistakenly believed that smoke was coming out of the train and jumped. Unfortunately, they were hit by another train.” Maharashtra Deputy CM Ajit Pawar said, “After the railway incident, the administration and other forces became active and started relief and rescue operations. Udhal Kumar and Vijay Kumar from Shravasti were in the train. They were travelling in the general bogie and were sitting on the upper berth. A tea seller from the pantry called out that there was a fire in the bogie, both of them heard it and panicked. Some passengers jumped out of the moving train to save themselves from the fire. But the train was moving at a good speed so one of them pulled the chain and the train stopped. Many passengers got off the train and started crossing the railway track. Another train, Karnataka Express came at a very high speed and hit the passengers crossing the railway track. So far 13 people have been declared dead. 10 of them have been identified while the other 3 are yet to be identified. The total number of injured is 10. We have instructed the administration to provide treatment to all the injured at government expense. Our ministers and collectors are investigating the incident.”
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