CR local jumps tracks, derails services

"The train was jam-packed because an earlier local from Badlapur had been cancelled," S L Dixit, a resident of Vithalwadi, said. "We suddenly felt a jolt followed by the sound of metal scraping on wood." Dixit said he also heard screams from the ladies compartment.

"Since the first two bogies were lying partly on the fast up track, it was closed for traffic. The site of the derailment has a turnover underneath, so the slowcorridor had to be closed down too," V G Kale, CR’s Assistant PRO said.

Incoming long-distance trains were also affected by the derailment. As many as 12 such trains were regulated till evening, resulting in a delay of more than two hours in their arrival. The incoming Pune-Mumbai Deccan Queen was terminated at Karjat and returned to Pune as a special train. More than 39 suburban services had been cancelled when the reports last came in. By the time the first CST-bound train on the slow corridor left at 9.20 am, platforms at Dombivli, Thakurli, Kalyan, Shahad, Ulhasnangar and Amberanth were packed with anxious commuters.

The situation was particularly bad on platform nos 4 & 5 of Kalyan station, where passengers were waiting for long-distance trains. Amit Bhatia, a student, was livid when assistant station master D J Kapadia told him at 10:30 am that he had no idea when the Deccan Express for Pune (scheduled to reach Kalyan at 7.45 am) would arrive. Other commuters seeking information had a similarexperience, because the indicators remained blank, and the only announcements being made were those warning against "suspicious people and objects" and "spitting."

Meanwhile, in anticipation of trouble, police bandobust at the station was strengthened. The fast corridor remained closed for repairs throughout the day, and services on that track were expected to resume by 11 pm.