Death in dawn train crash

At least 22 people were killed and 26 injured when the Delhi-bound Goa Express,whose engine driver is suspected to have ignored a signal....

At least 22 people were killed and 26 injured when the Delhi-bound Goa Express,whose engine driver is suspected to have ignored a signal,rammed into the last coach of the Mewar Express which had stopped near Mathura at daybreak today.

The Goa Express hit the Udaipur City-Hazrat Nizamuddin Mewar Express near a bridge,4 km from Mathura,around 5 am. Ten women and five children were among the dead the last two coaches of the Mewar Express had reserved space for women and the physically challenged.

The guard of the Mewar Express and two from the pantry car staff of the Goa Express were also killed. Of the 22 dead,19 bodies have been identified so far, said Divisional Railway Manager R M Tripathi.

The injured were rushed to the nearby Maheshwari Hospital on National Highway 2 and the District Hospital in Mathura. We have adequate facilities blood transfusion and trauma care to deal with the emergency, said Dr Ashok Kumar at the District Hospital. The more critically injured were rushed to hospitals in Delhi,Agra and Faridabad.

The coach at the rear end of the Mewar Express bore the brunt of the collision the Goa Express engine tore its way in. SSP Mathura B D Paulson said 18 people were rescued from the coach. The luggage section of the coach,he said,probably prevented higher casualties.

Railway Board chairman S S Khurana said: The cause of the accident will emerge after an inquiry by the Commissioner of Railway Safety.

But officials suspect the driver of the Goa Express was either overspeeding or jumped a signal. Prima facie the driver of the Goa Express disregarded the signal. Either he did not stop the train at the signal or did not proceed at a cautious speed, an official said.

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The driver and assistant driver of the Goa Express were taken off duty until completion of inquiry. Railway Board Member Traffic Sri Prakash ruled out the possibility of signal system failure,saying it was foolproof.

Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee,who ordered an inquiry into the mishap,announced an ex-gratia of Rs five lakh to the kin of the dead. She said the seriously injured would receive Rs one lakh and those with minor injuries would get Rs 10,000.

Uday Singh,who works as a line guard at Gate No. 528,said he rushed to the site on learning of the accident. There were desperate cries from people trapped under the debris and the metal mass, he said.

Gas and foam cutters were used to extricate the trapped passengers from the mangled coach. After the coach was detached,the Mewar Express left for Delhi with the passengers. Traffic was restored on the double line around 2 pm after cranes and accident relief coaches cleared the site.