At least seven people were killed and 35 others — including 10 women and six children — sustained serious injuries as the engine and nine coaches of Malada-New Delhi New Farakka Express train derailed at Harchandpur in Rae Bareli in Uttar Pradesh on Wednesday around 6.10am.
Four of the seriously injured are being treated at Lucknow’s King George Medical University and two at the city’s Sanjay Gandhi Postgraduate Institute of Medical Sciences.
An NDRF team, comprising 40 personnel, and senior officials from the State and the Railways, rushed to the spot for rescue. Railway Board Chairman Ashwani Lohani too visited the accident site and said the Railways has initiated a separate enquiry into the accident. The causes of the derailment will be known once the Anti-Terrorism Squad submits its report.
A special train, which was arranged for the stranded passengers, left Lucknow for New Delhi with 1,369 passengers on board, railway officials said, adding that they were given food packets to sustain them through the journey.
Railways Minister Piyush Goyal announced compensation of Rs 5 lakh for the kin of the dead, Rs 1 lakh for the injured and Rs 50,000 for those with minor injuries. “I offer my deepest condolences to the families of the deceased and those injured in the accident near Rae Bareli. I am in touch with officials for relief work,” Goyal tweeted.
The Minister has ordered an enquiry to be conducted by the Commission of Railway Safety, Northern Circle.
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar too expressed grief over the loss of lives caused by derailment of the Farakka Express and announced a compensation of Rs 2 lakh each to the next of the kin of the deceased from Bihar, besides Rs 50,000 to each injured person from the State. In a statement, Nitish said as per information received so far among those killed were four residents of Munger district and another from Kishanganj.
UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath too announced Rs 2 lakh compensation each for the kin of the deceased and Rs 50,000 for the seriously injured.
The New Farakka Express accident is the second major rail accident this year, which has so far registered the best safety figures in the past five years, as per the Railways.