RNS: Tragedy struck in Odisha’s Balasore as a three-way train collision resulted in a staggering loss of over 300 lives, leaving nearly 1000 individuals injured. This devastating incident marks the country’s deadliest train accident in the past two decades, as confirmed by officials following the conclusion of rescue operations.
On Saturday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi personally visited the site of the railway mishap and conducted a thorough inspection of the ground situation.
PM Modi promised that those guilty of the incident would face the consequences.
“PM @narendramodi at the site of the #BalasoreTrainAccident where he reviewed the ongoing relief works,” tweeted the PIB’s Twitter handle.
He met with local authorities, disaster relief teams, and railway officials.”
Notably, the death toll in Friday’s train accident in Odisha’s Balasore district, where two trains– Shalimar-Chennai Coromandel Express and Bengaluru-Howrah Superfast Express– derailed, rose to 300, while more than 1,000 people were injured.
According to the information, this catastrophe occurred as a result of a collision between three trains. The Duronto Express and the cargo train collided first, and then the Coromandel Express arrived and collided with it. Because of Coromandel’s fast speed, the Coromandel Express sustained the most damage. Two express trains and a freight train collided.
Meanwhile, a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) has been filed in the Supreme Court seeking a probe into the train accident.
Prime Minister announced an ex-gratia of two lakh rupees each to the next of kin of each deceased, and 50 thousand rupees will be given to the injured.
Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw also announced an ex-gratia for the accident victims. He said ten lakh rupees would be given to the next of kin of each killed, two lakh rupees each to the grievously injured and 50 thousand rupees each for minor injuries.
