At least 5 passengers were killed over 50 passengers were injured when six coaches of Haridwar bound Kalinga -Utkal Express derailed near Khatauli station in Muzaffarnagar district of western UP on Saturday evening.
ADG (Railway) V K Maurya said here that as per the preliminary information five passengers haves been killed while over 50 injured. He said six bogies have derailed and rescue and relief works are underway.
One coach of the 18477 Utkal Express from Puri to Haridwar was said to have rolled off the track and entered a house near the railway line. Two coaches were totally mangled and some of the coaches climbed on each other. He said several passengers are feared trapped in the debris and the death toll could rise.
Train traffic on the route has been affected and will be resumed only after clearing the tracks, officials said. Several trains on Dehradoon-Saharanpur Delhi are stranded. The trains held up include Dehradoon- Bandra express, Saharanpur—Allahabad Nauchandi express, Ambala-Delhi passenger , Shalimar express , Delhi=Dehradoon janshatbadi express.
The station superintendent of Muzaffarnagar Jawahar Singh said he was waiting for the instruction from the authorities for the alternative route for the trains held up between Muzaffarnagar and Dehradoon.
The accident spot is 24 kms away from Muzaffarnagar City and it is between Muzaffarnagar and Meerut. The ill fated train was slated to reach its destination Haridwar at 9 pm tonight. In view of suspected terror act, a team of the UP ATS has also rushed to the spot from Noida to investigate the matter.
Officials said NDRF teams from Delhi along with doctors have rushed to the spot. All hospitals in National capital region and nearby places have been alerted. Additional director general of police (Meerut), Prashant Kumar, divisional commissioner of Saharanpur have rushed to the accident site. The district administration of Muzaffarnagar has also deployed the PAC for the relief and rescue operation.
local administration officials have reached the spot and rescue operations are underway. The derailment is likely has disrupted the rail, traffic between Delhi and Haridwar.
UP chief minister Yogi Adityanath has expressed grief over the accident and ordered inquiry into the incident. Chief Minister said instructions have been issued to the officials to monitor the relief and rescue operation.