Indore-Patna train mishap toll 146

Tribune News Service

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Lucknow, November 21

The death toll in the Indore-Patna Express derailment tragedy today rose to 146 as more bodies were pulled out of the mangled coaches of the ill-fated train.

After a 35-hour search operation, 2,000-odd rescue workers now have little hope of finding anyone alive in the wreckage. The focus is now on clearing the tracks, checking and repairing damage to the rail line and resuming traffic as soon as possible.

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Uttar Pradesh DGP Javeed Ahmad said 123 bodies had been identified, of which 110 had been handed over to the next of kin. Kanpur District Magistrate Kaushal Raj Sharma said 82 injured passengers, three of them critical, were undergoing treatment in hospitals.  He said 10 passengers were still admitted in the district hospital in Kanpur Dehat and 72 were in the city’s state government hospitals — Lala Lajpat Rai Hospital and Ursula Hospital. 

Chief Secretary Rahul Bhatnagar today visited Kanpur to ensure coordination in the multi-agency relief and rescue operation. He met the injured and handed over Rs 10,000 as interim payment.

The UP Government had announced Rs 5 lakh as compensation for the families of the deceased, Rs 50,000 for the seriously injured and Rs 10,000 for those with minor injuries.

Commissioner of Railway Safety PK Acharya also visited the accident site and began the probe, which is being videographed.  In the Lok Sabha, Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu said a statutory inquiry had been ordered into the accident and promised the “strictest possible action” against the guilty.

Lieutenants from Jhajjar, Mandi among dead

Jhajjar/Mandi: The family of Lt Sandeep Chahar (24) of 12 Madras, a native of Silani village in Jhajjar, was making preparations for his wedding slated for February 18 when they got the tragic news of his death in the Kanpur train mishap. His promotion was due next month. The cremation is scheduled for Tuesday. A pall of gloom descended on Sarkaghat in Mandi (HP) as well as news came in of the death of Lt Narender Kumar (24) in the mishap. Commissioned in 25 Grenadiers seven months ago, he was a resident of Koini village. reports inside