High-level inquiry ordered into Bihar rail accident, many trains diverted as restoration works continue

Buxar, October 12

The railways on Thursday ordered a high-level inquiry into the derailment of the Delhi-Kamakhya North East Express in Bihar’s Buxar district, in which four people were killed and several injured, officials said.

Twenty-three coaches of the train, on the way to Assam from Delhi, derailed near the Raghunathpur station around 9.53 pm on Wednesday, they said.

“A high-level inquiry has been ordered to investigate the reason behind the incident,” East Central Railway’s chief public relations officer Birendra Kumar said in a statement.

An ex-gratia of Rs 10 lakh will be given to the next of kin of each deceased, and Rs 50,000 to the injured, he said.

ECR general manager Tarun Prakash, who is in Raghunathpur to supervise the restoration works, told PTI-Video that the priority is to clear the tracks.

“The number of casualties is four. The number of injured passengers is 40. The cause of derailment will be known only after investigation. At present, our priority is to clear the tracks. Until normal traffic is restored, trains running on the route will be diverted,” he said.

However, a Railway Police Force (RPF) officer had on Wednesday night said that at least 70 people were injured, and taken to local hospitals.

On the other side, the statement issued by the ECR said while five passengers were critically injured, 25 received minor injuries.

Prakash said the cause of the accident would be known only after the investigation is complete.

Meanwhile, all passengers of the train bound for Kamakhya in Guwahati in Assam, who were in a position to undertake the onward journey, boarded a relief train in the early hours of Thursday, officials said.