Girl jumps before train for not getting bicycle, mother dies in rescue bid

Puri: A family quarrel over a very trivial matter ended in a tragedy after a college-going girl committed suicide by jumping in front of a speeding train while her mother was also crushed under the wheel of same train while trying to rescue her at Nuapatana village near Biraharekrushnapur in the district today.

Twenty-year old Gayatri Pradhan took the extreme step following an altercation with her parents after they failed to fulfill her requirement of giving her a bicycle.

The relatives of the deceased said Gayatri's old cycle was stolen some days ago and since then she had been demanding a new one to commute to her college. However, languishing under abject poverty, her parents were unable to meet the demand of their daughter. The inability of giving a cycle led to repeated squabbles between the mother and daughter, said Bishnu Charan Pradhan, Gayatri's uncle.

On the fateful day, the altercation turned ugly as Gayatri jumped before the Howarda-Puri express near Biraharekrushnapur station at around 6 am.

"This is a clear case of run over. But the matter is under inquiry", said a GRP official after registering a case in this regard.

Additional Tehsildar Sahadev Sahoo said quoting locals’ statements that family dispute is the reason behind the shocking incident. However, the exact reason can only be ascertained after investigation, he added.