Toy train rams into tractor on Matheran-Neral route

A toy train collided with a tractor on Sunday between Jummapatti and Neral stations of the Matheran – Neral mini railway route. This is the second accident on the route within eight weeks. Two wheels of the toy train were derailed in the accident. No casualty was reported but the driver of the tractor sustained minor injuries. He was rushed to a private hospital at Neral.

On December 20,2008,a toy train had collided with a truck between Jummapatti and waterpipe stations on the same route. This train was also leaving for Neral from Matheran. According to the railway sources the Neral-bound toy train collided with a tractor that was attached with a trolley at 11.44 am on Sunday. It was coming from Matheran station. In the incident,Ram Dashrath Mokane,driver of the tractor fell down and suffered minor injuries. The people who were travelling in the trolley rushed him to Dhanvantari Hospital at Neral.

“After receiving the information,our physician Dr Pramod Sharma of Kalyan Hospital immediately rushed to the spot. He tried to admit the driver of the tractor to Kalyan Hospital. But Mokane refused to get admitted there,” said JN Lal,divisional railway manager,Central Railway.

“An FIR will be lodged against the tractor driver. In this route,there are speed breakers and signals at level crossings showing the status of the train. It is an unmanned level crossing and there is only minimum traffic on this route. Before crossing the tracks they should check the signals,” said a railway source.

“Two bikers move with running trains in this route to check accidents. Why don’t they take steps to avoid accidents at unmanned level crossings?” asked an employee at Neral station.