Toll in collision between Bhubaneswar-Bhadrak train rises to two

The toll in the collision between Bhubaneswar-Bhadrak passenger train and a goods train near Kathojodi station at Cuttack rose to two today with
the Railways confirming another casualty. Similarly, the number of injured persons which was put at 22 late last night mounted to 27 and most of them are undergoing treatment at SCB Medical College and Hospital at Cuttack, a senior East Coast Railway (ECoR) officer said.

The accident took place when the passenger train (number 78408) hit the goods train (BCN-DANKUNI) running on the same track from the rear last evening, leading to derailment of two coaches, he said. While one body had been retrieved from one of the mangled coaches of the passenger train shortly after the mishap, another death was reported later, the official said. The deceased were identified as Amulya Mohanty (50) and Ranjit Das (35), both employees of Government Railway Police (GRP), ECoR sources said. Voicing deep concern over the accident, Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu has ordered an immediate inquiry into the incident.

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The Railways swung into action to restore normal rail traffic between Bhubaneswar and Cuttack which was affected after the accident. As many as seven trains including Bhadrak-Bhubaneswar passenger, Puri-Paradip Express and Paradip-Puri Express were cancelled today. Meanwhile, train services via Cuttack started with restricted speed at the accident affected site, an ECoR official said.