Jagdalpur-Bhubaneswar Hirakhand Express derailed on Saturday at 11.30 pm near Kuneru station
The number of dead in the train derailment in Andhra Pradesh's Vizianagaram district has risen to 41. National Investigation Agency (NIA) and Crime Investigation Department (CID) officials from Andhra Pradesh have reached the accident site to probe if there was sabotage involved.
The Jagdalpur-Bhubaneswar Hirakhand Express derailed on Saturday at 11.30 pm near Kuneru station, 24 km from Rayagada in Odisha. Engine and nine coaches of Jagdalpur-Bhubaneswar Hirakhand Express jumped tracks in Vizianagaram last night. The train was on its way to the Odisha capital Bhubaneswar from Jagdalpur in Chhattisgarh.
Officials said 68 passengers were injured due to the derailment of nine coaches. They were being treated in hospitals in Andhra Pradesh and Odisha.
NIA is already probing the alleged role of Pakistan's Inter Services Agency or ISI behind the Indore-Patna Express derailment near Kanpur in Uttar Pradesh that claimed 150 lives.
Andhra Pradesh's CID team included Additional Director General of Police Dwaraka Tirumala Rao and Inspector General of Police Amit Garg.
Officials have not ruled out the involvement of Maoists as the Andhra-Odisha border area is considered a Maoist stronghold.
The Andhra government has announced Rs. 5 lakh each for the next of relative of those who died in the accident. Meanwhile, Railways has announced Rs 2 lakh as compensation.
Meanwhile, Railway officials have so far identified 23 bodies. Those identified are: M Krishna (35), P Srinu (25), B Kamala (F) (50), Gayatri Sahu (F) (14), Dilip K R Routh (51), T L Mainj (45), Somu Annamma (Female), Vishnu Prasad Sahu, Rajanayak (18), Subhash Ch Sahu (60), S Renuka (female), P Poli (35), Josodha Pandit(female), Ram Prasad Pandit, K Revathi (F) (16), Mondal Balram, Suba Barati Sahu (female), Tapan Kumar Pradhan (26), Kartik Sahu(27), Radha (8), K Ravi Kumar (20), Debudhar Boyi and Poolan Devi.