Rourkela train derailment: Four including loco pilot, station manager suspended

A day after a goods train derailed in Odisha’s Rourkela and crashed into a residential colony, Indian Railways on Thursday placed four railway personnel under suspension. Rourkela station manager, the loco pilot, the guard and the centring employee were suspended for negligence in duty.

As per reports, the employees have been suspended as part of an ongoing investigation into the cause of the incident. Railway General Manager Anil Mishra has initiated a comprehensive inquiry while the exact cause of the derailment remains undetermined.

The incident occurred at around 6 am while shunting (the process of organizing and sorting bogies into trains for departure) work was underway. Due to some reasons, the three wagons of the goods train jumped off the tracks and crashed into the Malgodown area in Basanti Colony. 

Residents were left shaken as they narrowly avoided what could have been a catastrophic event, raising concerns over railway safety and the reliability of signalling systems in the region. Fortunately, there were no casualties or injuries, but a tempo on the way of the train was crushed due to the impact.

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Key questions revolve around whether there were defects in the railway tracks or issues with the signalling system. On the other hand, reports said that the colony has been illegally set up and locals opined that the incident was deliberate to drive them out.