Accidents derail Railways' safety claim

Accidents including the recent head on collision between two trains in Punjab have shaken the faith of the commuters.

Notwithstanding claims of improved safety and security by Railways, some accidents including the recent one in Punjab involving a head on collision between two trains have shaken the faith of the commuters.

HT Image

In the second major train accident in 2004, 37 people, including 11 women and a child, were killed and about 50 injured when Ahmedabad-bound Jammu Tawi Express collided head-on with a local train at Mukerian in Punjab about 40 kms from Jalandhar on December 14.

Earlier, 30 people were killed when the Guwahati-bound Kanchenjunga Express rammed into a truck at an unmanned level-crossing in West Bengal's Dinajpur district on February 27.

In an "avoidable" incident, on November 13, five women were killed and at least 10 others injured in a stampede that broke out at New Delhi Railway Station when a heavy crowd of Bihar-bound passengers were rushing to catch a train.