Five-year-old Odisha boy falls off train in forest, rescued hours later

Railway police inspector MK Sahu said the boy’s father and uncle, who were travelling with him from Durg to Bhubaneswar, were asleep when the boy fell from the Durg-Puri Express

Published on: Sep 5, 2024, 09:34:02 IST

By Debabrata Mohanty

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A five-year-old boy from Odisha’s Berhampur escaped miraculously after he fell off an express train in a forested area. A goods train driver spotted him hours later on the railway tracks and helped rescue him.

The Railway Protection Force personnel rushed to the scene to rescue the kid. (AFP/Representative)

Railway police inspector (Rairakhol) MK Sahu said the boy’s father, and uncle, who were travelling with him from Durg to Bhubaneswar, were asleep when the boy fell from the Durg-Puri Express while going to the toilet around 2 am on Wednesday.

“The compartment door was open when the boy fell while looking out. He slipped and fell near Angarpada village nearly four km from the Rairakhol station. He fell across the parallel track and suffered injuries to his head and hands. He was unable to decide what to do and sat on the tracks. A few hours later, the pilot of a goods train coming on the same track spotted him and alerted the Rairakhol station authorities.”

Sahu said the Railway Protection Force personnel rushed to the scene to rescue the kid who was taken to a hospital in critical condition. The boy’s father looked for him in all compartments before informing authorities at the Dhenkanal station. He later learnt his son had been rescued and was receiving treatment.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Debabrata Mohanty
Debabrata Mohanty is a senior assistant editor of Hindustan Times who works as state correspondent from Odisha covering the state's politics, governance, public policy, natural disasters, environment and its society for close to three decades. With his long years of reporting from the state capital of Bhubaneswar, Mohanty has been known as one of the most experienced and credible journalists covering Odisha for the national English dailies. His reporting combines on-ground detail with deep institutional knowledge detailing the state's changing politics, governance issues, administrative reforms and the functioning of its public institutions. He has regularly reported on issues ranging from legislative developments and public policy implementation. Politics is his core areas of expertise as he closely tracks Odisha's political landscape, including the rise and transformation of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the Biju Janata Dal (BJD), the two principal political parties in Odisha. His long association with the state's political establishment enables him to write on contemporary developments in a larger political context. Mohanty takes a deep interest in writing human interest stories, environmental issues and documenting the impact of cyclones, floods, heatwaves, and other climate-related events in one of the most disaster-prone states. His coverage extends to public health, governance reforms and stories on accountability of government institutions. Before joining Hindustan Times, Mohanty worked with The Indian Express, Mail Today, and The Telegraph, where he covered at least six general elections and as many assembly elections. In 2007, he was selected for the prestigious Chevening Young Indian Print Journalist Programme at the University of Lincoln, United Kingdom, where he received advanced training in print journalism. In 2009 he won the Press Institute of India-International Committee of Red Cross award on conflict reporting for his on-ground reportage of 2008 Kandhamal riots.Read More

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