It's been two days since the horrific three-train collision tragedy in Balasore district of Odisha. The railway officials are working round the clock to completely restore the services on the track. Railways minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, who has been camping at the accident site, tweeted in the evening to inform that the “Track linking of Up-line has been done at 16:45 hrs. Overhead electrification work started”.
After identifying the change in electronic interlocking as the root cause of the incident which has so far claimed 275 lives according to official figures, the railways has recommended a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) into one of the deadliest rail accident in decades.
ALSO READ: How Coromandel Express derailed, set off triple-train collision, explains Railway Board
Here are the top developments pertaining to the Odisha train tragedy.
1. The Railways have been able to restore train services in the down-line track of the accident site. The restoration was done in 51 hours since the mishap.
2. The death toll in the accident has been revised from 288 to 275 by the Odisha government which said that some bodies were counted twice earlier. "Yesterday, there was a confusion created by the figure of 288 by Railway. So far, there have been 275 deaths, there are some cases which were double counted. The number of injuries are 1,175 and many of them have been discharged already. Now, less than 300 are in the hospital," Odisha chief secretary Pradeep Kumar Jena told PTI.
3. There are 187 bodies yet to be identified, and keeping them till the time they are claimed by the kin is proving to be a challenge. Odisha is facing a shortage of morgues due to the massive number of bodies after the accident. According to a PTI report, 110 bodies were kept at AIIMS Bhubaneswar while the remaining have Capital Hospital, Amri Hospital, Sum Hospital and some other private facilities.
4. Railway officials have said that till the overhead electric cable is repaired, only diesel locomotives can run and will take another three days before electric trains can ply. "By Tuesday we should be able to do it," Union minister Dharmendra Pradhan said.
ALSO READ: Odisha train crash: Audit report last year flagged multiple shortcomings. 10 points
5. The Railways has said it made special arrangements on helpline number 139 to help the kins of those deceased in the mishap. A team of railways officials is continuously manning the helpline and will provide all the relevant details to the callers after coordinating with the zonal railways and the state government, the railways said.
4. Railway officials have said that till the overhead electric cable is repaired, only diesel locomotives can run and will take another three days before electric trains can ply. "By Tuesday we should be able to do it," Union minister Dharmendra Pradhan said.
ALSO READ: Odisha train crash: Audit report last year flagged multiple shortcomings. 10 points
5. The Railways has said it made special arrangements on helpline number 139 to help the kins of those deceased in the mishap. A team of railways officials is continuously manning the helpline and will provide all the relevant details to the callers after coordinating with the zonal railways and the state government, the railways said.
6. A PIL has been filed before the Supreme Court seeking direction to the Centre to set up an inquiry commission headed by a retired top court judge to probe the Odisha train mishap.
7. Several passengers on the two trains were migrant workers. The Railways said even if the victims were ticketless travellers, they will receive compensation. "Irrespective of the passengers being ticketless (or not), they will receive compensation," railway spokesperson Amitabh Sharma said.
8. The railways has cancelled 123 trains, diverted 56, short-terminated 10 and rescheduled 14 trains due to the accident in Odisha in which 275 people were killed, PTI reported. These trains include those with journey commencing from June 3 to June 7.
9. Politics continues over the Odisha train mishap. West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee hit out at the Centre again, questioning why the trains were not equipped with anti-collision system. “When yesterday he (Railways minister) was present with me and I mentioned about anti-collision device, why didn't he open his mouth? 'Dal mein kuch kaala hai', we want the truth to come out”.
10. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi too attacked the Centre, asking who is accountable for the deaths of over 270 people. He even demanded that Prime Minister Narendra Modi ask railways minister Ashwini Vaishnaw for his resignation. Union minister Anurag Thakur hit back at the former MP, saying, "Who is running away from accountability? Our Union Ministers were present on the accident spot &doing their duties. Rahul Gandhi goes abroad and defames India”.