Indian Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said the horrific train crash in eastern India on June 2 was due to a signal system fault that caused the train to switch to the wrong track.
Specifically, the cause of the disaster was "a change in the electronic interlock process", a complex signaling system designed to prevent trains from colliding by coordinating the movement of train cars on the track.
Panoramic view of the accident scene in Balasore district, Odisha state (Eastern India) taken from a flycam.
The fault caused the Coromandel train (carrying 1,257 passengers) traveling from Kolkata to Chennai to veer onto a side track. The train then hit a freight train, derailed, and collided with and tore off the last two carriages of a third passenger train, the Yesvantpur-Howrah (carrying 1,039 people).
The Indian Railways Minister said that "those responsible" have been identified but their identities have not been disclosed. The country is still investigating the incident.
Meanwhile, a railway station manager in Odisha state explained that the signal failure could have been due to a technical glitch or it could have been human error – as traffic signals are usually handled by station staff.
Rescue workers search for survivors after a horrific train accident in India. Photo: AP.
The tragic accident that occurred at 7 p.m. (local time) on June 2 is the worst rail disaster in India in more than two decades. Current statistics show that nearly 300 people have died in the incident, while more than 850 people have been injured. This number is likely to continue to rise as many people are still trapped in the rubble.
The accident comes at a time when Prime Minister Narendra Modi is focusing on modernizing the British colonial-era rail network. Despite government efforts to improve rail safety, hundreds of accidents occur each year on India's railways.
On June 3, Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited the site, spoke to rescue workers and inspected the rubble. He also visited victims being treated in hospitals.
Mr Vaishnaw said the families of those killed would receive one million rupees ($12,000), while those seriously injured would receive 200,000 rupees and those with minor injuries 50,000 rupees. Several state governments have also announced compensation, Reuters reported.
Most train accidents in India are caused by human error or outdated signaling equipment. India's worst rail accident occurred in 1981, when a train plunged off a bridge into a river in Bihar state, killing about 800 people.
MH (according to Tuoi Tre, Zing)
Source
Comment (0)