Coromandel Express Accident: The death count in the crash was revised to 275
India's Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) on Saturday announced many relaxations for the claim settlement process for the victims of the horrific three-train pile-up in Odisha's Balasore that killed over 270 people. The tragedy is being described as one of the worst in the country.
"We are deeply saddened by the tragic train accident in Balasore, Odisha on Friday. LIC is committed to supporting those affected and will expedite claim settlements to provide financial relief," LIC chairman Siddhartha Mohanty said in a statement.
On Sunday, Indian Railways sought a CBI inquiry into the accident, and also indicated that the electronic interlocking system, which serves as a safety mechanism to prevent collisions and conflicting movements between trains, could have been tampered with.
Kavach", the indigenously developed automatic train protection system, was not available on the route where the accident took place.
The insurance behemoth said in lieu of registered death certificates, a list of casualties published by the Railways, police or any state or Central authorities will be accepted as proof of death.
The Corporation has also set up a special help desk and a call centre number (022-68276827) at the divisional and branch levels to respond to claim-related queries and for providing assistance to claimants, the statement added.
"All efforts will be taken to ensure that the claimants are reached out and claims are settled expeditiously to the affected families," it added.
The death count in the crash was revised to 275 from 288 by the Odisha government which said some bodies were counted twice earlier.