AT LEAST four persons were injured as 13 coaches of Chhapra-Surat Tapti Ganga Express (19046) derailed in Chhapra on Sunday morning. The coaches, including four AC and five sleeper, derailed near Gautam Sthan station which is the station after Chhapra, around 10 am. As the train had not gained speed, the derailment did not cause much damage. Railway traffic on the route was disturbed for at least six hours. Many passengers travelling on the train were inconvenienced. “Stranded passengers were moved to Chhapra via buses. The reason of derailment is being ascertained,” said North Eastern Railway Chief Public Relations Officer Sanjay Yadav. A railways team from Varanasi reached Chhapra to probe into the incident. One of the reasons under assessment is that a portion of the rail on a bend did not have adequate ballasting (stones that provide cushion to tracks). Thus the rails spread under the weight of the train and subsequently the wheels “dropped” off. Local residents said guard’s coach derailed first and led to derailment of other coaches.
