Earlier on Sunday, three trains had been cancelled and six others diverted following the derailment of Utkal Express in Khatauli, near Muzaffarnagar on August 19, in which 22 people were killed and nearly 150 passengers injured.
The services of Utkal Express had been cancelled for one day each from Puri and Haridwar.
Presently, it will run as per its schedule of timings and stoppages, informed sources from East Coast Railway (ECoR).
Also read: Utkal Express Derailment: 4 Railway Staff Suspended, One Transferred
Meawhile, ECoR has informed that the level crossing gate connecting Jobra and Sikharpur will be closed for five days for safety related modernisation work at Cuttack railway station.
The level crossing Gate Number 177 at the North side of Cuttack railway station, between Kendrapara Road and Cuttack Railway Station, connecting Jobra-Sikharpur will remain closed for public from August 23 to August 27.
Sabita Mallick (50), a resident of Nuapada in Balasore district has sustained injuries on her leg and face. Another person identified as Mubarak Ali, an employee of 41 Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) Battalion, is also injured.
Another person injured in the mishap is Madhu Mandal (45), a resident of Khurda district.
Also read: Utkal Express derailment: 13 bodies identified, no Odia in list: ECoR
The other two injured are Amaya Das and Yatri Das, both residents of Khurda district, said sources.
Talking to OTV, wife of an Odia passenger Dumet Barik said, "He called us after one hour of the accident and said he has sustained minor injuries and has gone for a medical check-up."
Mother of another Odia passenger Ranjit Pradhan said, "I called him after getting the information. He is fine but some of his fellow passengers are injured."
Bhubaneswar/Haridwar: Amid cries for help and chaos all around, survivor of the Utkal Express that derailed at Khatauli near Muzaffarnagar, Banita Padhi from Aska shared the shock and horror she experienced. The 26-year old partially blind woman had boarded the train from Bhubaneswar.
"I boarded the Utkal Express from Bhubaneswar and was travelling alone without an escort though I'm partially blind as there was no one in my family to accompany me. This was my first trip alone and that too all the way till Haridwar. I had to appear for an exam of the National Institute for Visually Handicapped (NIVH) in Dehradun.
I was seated in the S1 bogie and was mentally revising what I had prepared for the exam. It was evening time and there was a lot of buzz among passengers chit chatting and talking to each other when suddenly I heard a deafening thud. The bogie sped away and we could feel that the train had derailed. In fact, our bogie overturned too.
Within a few moments, the screams for help, the pandemonium among fellow passengers and the helter skelter of people outside made it feel like the world has come to an end and there’s no way out. For a few minutes I had lost all hopes; all my dreams of a better future, of clearing the NIVH exam and getting skilled in computer applications so I could stand on my own feet despite my visual impairment.
Also Read: Utkal Express Derailment: List Of Trains Cancelled, Diverted
But just as my heart was sinking in despair, some people called out for us to give our hands so they could pull us out from the emergency window.
Some of us were really lucky. Other passengers of our bogie were critically injured. By God's grace, I was saved and came out safe with just a scar on a hand. But am equally worried about other fellow passengers.
After being rescued, I stood for some time and kept praying for the affected passengers. But since God had given me another chance in life, I followed other passengers towards the nearest railway station. When I reached there I found out there was no train to Haridwar any time soon. But an old couple who were local residents of Khatauli helped me. I think they were Godsent.
They gave me shelter for the night and next morning even helped me board a bus to my exam venue. At last, today I appeared for the exam and did well too. But my heart goes out to all the victims of the disaster.”
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As restoration work is underway, some major changes have been made in the schedule of trains passing through the particular route.
The list of trains that have been cancelled include 18478/18477 Haridwar-Puri Kalinga Utkal Express, 14521/14522 Ambala-Delhi- Ambala Intercity Express and the 14682 Jalandhar-New Delhi Intercity Express. Utkal Express which was scheduled to leave Haridwar today has been cancelled along with the train scheduled to depart from Puri on August 22.
18477 Utkal Express that met with the unfortunate mishap will run on diverted route via Hazrat Nizamuddin-Shamli-Tapri Station route, railway sources said.
Apart from this, six other trains have been diverted, the railway ministry said in a statement.
The 18238 Amritsar-Bilaspur Chhatisgarh Express has been diverted via Ambala- Panipat-New Delhi-Hazrat Nizamuddin, it said.
The 12904 Amritsar-Mumbai Central Golden Temple Mail has been diverted via Ambala-Panipat- New Delhi-Hazrat Nizamuddin.
The 14646 Jammu Tawi-Delhi Shalimar Express has been diverted via Ambala-Panipat-Delhi.
Also Read: Utkal Express derailment: 5 bodies identified, no Odia in list: ECoR
The 19326 Amritsar-Indore Express has been diverted via Ambala-Panipat-New Delhi- Hazrat Nizamuddin.
The 04402 Katra-Anand Vihar service has been diverted via Ambala-Panipat-Delhi and will be short terminated at Delhi.
The 24155 Allahabad-Udhampur Express has been terminated via Khurja-Delhi-Panipat-Ambala.
Meanwhile, Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu has directed Chairman Railway Board (CRB) to fix responsibility on prima facie evidence by end of the day.
Will not allow laxity in operations by the Board. Have directed CRB to fix responsibility on prima facie evidence by end of day.
— Suresh Prabhu (@sureshpprabhu) August 20, 2017
Addressing a press conference, chief PRO Nirakar Das informed that the identity of five deceased has been ascertained while so far there is no report of casualties from Odisha.
The deceased have been identified as –Sukhi Prajapati (Madhya Pradesh), Alok Sarkar (New Delhi), Vishnu Goswami (Gwalior), Rinki Kumari (Agra), Bhadra Sen, Karishma (Saharanpur), Arati (Madhya Pradesh), Shital Singh Kushvaha (Madhya Pradesh), Sumit Garg (Sharanpur), Rampal Singh Sharma (Uttar Pradesh). Vineet Mittal (Uttar Pradesh) and Brajkumar Prajapati (Madhya Pradesh), Pramod Kumar and (Uttar Pradesh).
As per preliminary reports, five passengers from Odisha including- Sabita Mallick, Madhu Mandal, Amaya Das, Devendra Das and Yatri Das have been injured in the train mishap.
Das further informed that of the total 130 injured, 97 passengers are undergoing treatment at various hospitals while the remaining,who have sustained minor injuries in the incident, are being discharged after preliminary treatment.
Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik in a tweet message prayed for early recovery of the 5 passengers from State injured in the train mishap.
"Our final figures say 20 people lost their lives and 92 were injured, out of whom 22 have sustained grievous injuries," Mohd Jamshed from the Railway Board told at a press conference today.
Railway officials stated that six boggies of Sleeper Class coaches have been worst affected in the derailment.
Also Read: Utkal Express Derailment: Union & UP Govt Doing Best To Help Victims, Says Pradhan
The Haridwar-bound train came off the tracks in Uttar Pradesh’s Muzaffarnagar district on Saturday evening.
Atleast 14 coaches of the Utkal Express had derailed in Khatauli near Muzaffarnagar in Uttar Pradesh on Saturday evening.
The works for restoration of the railway tracks at the derailment site is being carried out on a war footing with senior officials supervising the work. The restoration work is likely to be completely by tonight, officials informed.
Also Read: Utkal Express Derailment: Five-Member Team From Odisha To Visit Spot Today
BJP MLA from Kuchinda Rabi Nayak had rushed to the accident site and also met the injured at the hospital.
“Rabi Nayak is camping there since last night to help people esp. the ones from Odisha;union Govt & UP Govt are doing their best to help the victims,” said Pradhan in a tweet message.
BJP MLA from Kuchinda Sh Rabi Nayak rushed to the accident site;met the injured;met the railways &dist authorities pic.twitter.com/N3MrWZjZCp
— Dharmendra Pradhan (@dpradhanbjp) August 20, 2017
He is camping there since last night to help people esp. the ones from Odisha;union Govt & UP Govt are doing their best to help the victims pic.twitter.com/4R0jLumFyC
— Dharmendra Pradhan (@dpradhanbjp) August 20, 2017
As per latest information, out of the total 130 passengers who have been injured in the train mishap, three are from Odisha. They have been identified as Sabita Mallick, Madhu Mandal and Mubarak Ali.
Also Read: Utkal Express Derailment: Rescue Operations Completed, Compensation Announced
“We have met two injured and they are being provided with necessary treatment at various hospitals,” said Nayak.
The team led by State Commerce and Transport Minister Nrusingha Sahoo has been constituted by Odisha Government to oversee measures to be undertaken in case of casualties of any residents from Odisha in the train mishap.
The team also comprising Rajya Sabha member Pratap Deb, Parsuram Dhada, Muktikanta Mandal and Sukant Naik as members have also been directed to assist in health treatment for any injured if any.
Although the exact casualty details from Odisha are yet to be confirmed the state government has declared compensation for the victims of the mishap.
Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has announced Rs 5 lakh ex-gratia to kin of persons killed in accident and Rs 50,000 financial assistance for the injured.
As per the final reservation chart details, 99 people had boarded the train from various stations in Odisha. While 11 persons were travelling in tier 3 AC and 88 persons had booked tickets in Sleeper class.
Also Read: Utkal Express Derailment: Rescue operations completed, compensation declared
Earlier, 14 coaches of Puri Haridwar Kalinga Utkal Express had derailed near Muzaffarnagar claiming 23 lives while injuring more than 125 persons.
The train was nearly three hours short of reaching its destination when the accident took place at around 5.46 pm yesterday.
Most of the injured are being treated at Muzaffarnagar district hospital, Muzaffarnagar Medical College and Meerut Medical College.
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Expressing grief over the loss of lives, Union Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu in his twitter post said he is closely monitoring the situation. Prabhu directed railway doctors to visit the injured in the hospitals and ensure best possible medical help in coordination with the officials of health ministry.
Rescue operations completed. Have directed Railway Doctors to visit the injured in hospitals and ensure best possible medical help.
— Suresh Prabhu (@sureshpprabhu) August 19, 2017
The railway ministry has declared ex-gratia of Rs 3.5 lakh for kin of the deceased while Rs 50,000 for seriously injured and Rs 25,000 for persons who sustained minor injuries.
Ex gratia of Rs.3.5 Lakh for those who lost their lives,Rs.50 thousand for seriously injured 1/
— Suresh Prabhu (@sureshpprabhu) August 19, 2017
As many as 11 passengers in 3rd tier AC and 88 passengers in Sleeper class boarded the train from Puri, Khurda, Bhubaneswar, Cuttack, Jajpur-Keonjhar Road, Rourkela and Jharsuguda stations in Odisha to destinations beyond Nizamuddin, the final reservation chart said.
Although the exact casualty details from Odisha are yet to be confirmed the state government has declared compensation for the victims of the mishap. Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has announced Rs 5 lakh ex-gratia to kin of persons killed in accident and Rs 50,000 financial assistance for the injured.
As many as three trains have been cancelled and six other trains have been diverted following the derailment of the express train.
Trains including Ambala-Delhi- Ambala Intercity Express, Haridwar-Puri Utkal Kalinga Express, and Jalandhar-New Delhi Intercity Express commencing journey tomorrow have been cancelled.
Also Read: Utkal Express Derailment: Five-Member Team From Odisha To Visit Spot Today
Apart from this, six other trains, which commenced journey today, have been diverted, the railway ministry said in a statement. The 18238 Amritsar-Bilaspur Chhatisgarh Express has been diverted via Ambala- Panipat-New Delhi-Hazrat Nizamuddin while 12904 Amritsar-Mumbai Central Golden Temple Mail has been diverted via Ambala-Panipat- New Delhi-Hazrat Nizamuddin.
Similarly, 14646 Jammu Tawi-Delhi Shalimar Express has been diverted via Ambala-Panipat-Delhi and 19326 Amritsar-Indore Express has been diverted via Ambala-Panipat-New Delhi- Hazrat Nizamuddin. The 04402 Katra-Anand Vihar service has been diverted via Ambala-Panipat-Delhi and will be short terminated at Delhi while 24155 Allahabad-Udhampur Express has been terminated via Khurja-Delhi-Panipat-Ambala.
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New Delhi: Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu today directed Chairman, Railway Board, to fix responsibility on "prima facie evidence by the end of day" into the derailment of the Utkal Express in Uttar Pradesh.
The minister said he was monitoring the situation closely and that restoration of tracks was his top priority.
Over 20 people died and 156 were injured after 14 coaches of the Utkal Express derailed near Muzaffarnagar in western Uttar Pradesh yesterday evening.
"Restoration is top priority. Seven coaches tackled. Also ensuring best possible medical care for the injured. Monitoring situation closely," he said in a tweet.
"Will not allow laxity in operations by the Board. Have directed CRB to fix responsibility on prima facie evidence by end of day," he tweeted.
The minister, who has been keeping a close tab on the situation since yesterday, directed senior officials and medical personnel to provide assistance to injured passengers and all possible help to relatives of affected passengers.
Prabhu had ordered an inquiry into the derailment yesterday. He said he was personally monitoring the situation and strict action will be taken in case of any lapse.
The minister also announced Rs 3.5 lakh ex-gratia compensation for those who lost their lives, Rs 50,000 for the seriously injured and Rs 25,000 for those who received minor injuries.
Notwithstanding the railways' attempts to upgrade the safety apparatus, many such accidents continue to occur.
Over 20 people died and 97 were injured after 14 coaches of the Utkal Express derailed near Muzzafarnagar in western Uttar Pradesh on Saturday evening.
According to official figures, of a total of 586 rail accidents in the last five years, nearly 53 per cent were due to derailments.
Since November 2014, there have been 20 rail accidents, many of them minor.
The worst accident was the November 20, 2016 derailment of the Indore-Patna Express near Kanpur which resulted in 150 deaths and over 150 injuries.
The train pulled out of Pukhrayan station, on the outskirts of Kanpur, and derailed soon after. Several causes, including overcrowding and fracture in the railway line, were attributed to the accident.
On September 12, 2015, a narrow-gauge train, the Shivalik Queen, a chartered train from Kalka to Shimla, derailed on September 12, 2015.
36 British tourists and a tour guide were on the train.
Two of the tourists died in the accident and 15 were injured.
Nine coaches of the Secunderabad Junction Mumbai Lokmanya Tilak Terminus Duronto Express derailed near Karnataka s Kalburgi town on September 12, 2015, resulting in two deaths and seven injuries.
The Madhya Pradesh twin train derailments happened on August 4, 2015 when the Kamayani Express, on its way to Varanasi in UP, was the first to derail owing to flash floods in the area, followed by the Janata Express. The total casualty was 31 with over 100 injured.
The Rourkela-Jammu Tawi Muri Express derailed in Kaushambi district of Uttar Pradesh on May 25, 2015. Eight bogies of the train derailed, leaving five dead and over 50 injured.
On March 20, 2015 the Dehradun-Varanasi Janata Express derailed in Rae Bareli district resulted in the death of 58 passengers and injuring over 150.
On February 13, 2015, 10 people were killed and around 150 were injured when nine bogies of the Bangalore-Ernakulam Intercity Express derailed on the outskirts of Bengaluru.