32 Die as Train Derails Near Rae Bareli in Uttar Pradesh, 50 People Injured

Thirty two people have died and over 50 were injured as two coaches of the Dehradun-Varanasi Janta Express derailed in Uttar Pradesh's Rae Bareli district.

The accident took place around 9.10 on Friday morning as the train was coming to a stop at the Bachhrawan railway station - 30 km from Rae Bareli.

It was likely that there was a brake failure, news agency ANI quoted railway sources as saying. The engine overshot the signal, two compartments were derailed.

One of the coaches, which was a general compartment, has been crushed by the impact -- the rescue work took around 6 hours. The other was a guard compartment which is likely to have been vacant. If not for the vacant coach, the number of casualties would have been higher, officials told NDTV.

In a series of tweets, Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu said Railways has been prioritising safety as a "thrust area". An inquiry has been ordered into the incident, he also said.
 

This budget I focused on Safety as I feel saddened by loss of life and injuries to our valued passengers. We must modernise crumbling infra

Suresh Prabhu (@sureshpprabhu) March 20, 2015

Neglect of past or limited budget resource can't be the reason for accidents, though it takes some time to neutralise past inaction we will

Suresh Prabhu (@sureshpprabhu) March 20, 2015

Gas cutters were used to get the injured people out of the mangled compartments. A team of doctors from Lucknow's King George Medical University have been sent to the spot to treat the injured.

News Agency Indo-Asian News Service reported that there was some disturbance in the area -- furious locals raised slogans against the administration and railway authorities, saying the rescuers took a long time to reach the spot.

An ex gratia of Rs. 2 lakh has been declared for the next of kin of the deceased, those injured will be given Rs. 50000.

The accident has disrupted train services in the New Delhi-Lucknow-Varanasi sector.

Following are the helpline numbers released by the Railways:

Lucknow         09794830973,
Varanasi          0542-2503814
Pratapgarh       0534-2223830
Rae Bareli        0535-2211224
Bachhrawan     0979-4845621
Dehradun         0135-2624002, 2625003
Haridwar          0134-226477, 226479
Bareilly            0581-2558161, 2558162