Twitter user ‘flagged’ danger at Delhi railway station 5 days before derailment

A Twitter user has claimed he had warned the railway ministry about a potential mishap at Delhi’s Shivaji Bridge, five days before the Ranchi Rajdhani express derailed near the station

A Twitter user has claimed he had warned the railway ministry about a potential mishap at Delhi’s Shivaji Bridge, five days before the Ranchi Rajdhani express derailed near the station on Thursday.

The photograph showing the damaged portion of the railway track tweeted by the user (Twitter/Screengrab)

Rakesk Kumar Kaushik tweeted a photograph to @RailMinIndia on September 2, drawing its attention to a damaged portion of a railway track near the station. Kaushik tweeted at 10.47am and got @RailMinIndia’s response in 25 minutes. The ministry’s tweet asked Delhi Division of the Northern Railway to “look into the matter”.

DRM Delhi then forwarded the complaint to @srden-cdli for necessary action. However, there was no reply to the tweet.

Besides the derailment of Delhi-bound Rajdhani Express barely 200 metres away from New Delhi station, two more train mishaps took place on Thursday. Those involved in rescue operation said that a crack on the rail could have triggered the accident. The Railways, however, has brushed aside the allegations and claim that only a proper investigation will ascertain the cause.

Twitter users who spotted the tweet have criticized the Railways for the ‘criminal negligence’ and called for action against the officials.