Editor's Pick | At least 2 dead, 31 injured as train derails in U.P.’s Gonda

Two persons were killed and 31 injured as the Chandigarh-Dibrugarh Express derailed and eight of its coaches overturned in Gonda district of Uttar Pradesh on Thursday. “Train number 15904 Chandigarh-Dibrugarh Express that left Wednesday night from Chandigarh derailed near Gonda Junction station between Motiganj and Jhilahi railway stations around 2.37 p.m. on Thursday under the jurisdiction of North Eastern Railway [NER],” said Sabyasachi De, Chief Public Relations Officer for the Northeast Frontier Railway. Tribhuvan Narayan, the loco-pilot, is safe. He, as well as other passengers, reportedly heard a loud explosive sound seconds before the derailment of the eight coaches. A 40-member medical team and 15 ambulances arrived at the spot and more medical teams and ambulances were rushed there as well, said Uttar Pradesh Relief Commissioner G.S. Naveen Kumar. The Union Railway Ministry has ordered a high-level committee to investigate the incident, apart from an inquiry to be conducted by the Commissioner of Railway Safety. Railway officials said that it was too early to draw definitive conclusions and that the cause of the accident is still being ascertained. Experts said there are multiple possible causes of derailment, including defects in the tracks or the bogies. Due to the accident, all up-and-down movement along the line was stopped. Two passenger trains between Gonda and Gorakhpur were cancelled and 11 trains diverted. Affected passengers were transported in buses from the accident site to Mankapur station, from where the Railways arranged for a special rake to transport them to the train’s final destination of Dibrugarh in Assam. In a post on X, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sharma said he was monitoring the situation closely and that teams were on standby for support. An enhanced ex-gratia amount of ₹10 lakh for the kin of those who died, along with ₹2.5 lakh for those with grievous injuries, and ₹50,000 to those with minor or simple injuries has been announced by the railways. The Opposition launched a near-unified attack on the Modi government, questioning the lapses in safety measures. Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge slammed the government in a post on X. “PM @narendramodi and his Railway Minister, who leave no opportunity for self-publicity, must take direct responsibility of the massive lapses that have plagued the Indian Railways,” he said, noting that just a month ago, 11 people had died when a goods train collided with the Sealdah-Agartala Kanchanjunga Express. He demanded the expeditious installation of the Kavach anti-collision system on all rail routes across India to prevent such accidents. After the Kanchanjunga Express mishap, the Commissioner of Railway Safety had said the accident was “waiting to happen”. The probe report, Mr. Kharge said, pointed out failure of automatic signals, and lapses at multiple levels. The much-touted anti-collision device, Kavach, was not installed on this route. Progress on implementation of Kavach has been slow because of lack of vendors. According to the Railway Board, the Kavach system is operational in only 1,500 km. The entire Railways spans nearly 68,000 km. Despite rising accidents, Kavach work has been on the slow track. The Hindu’s Editorials ​Questionable intent: On the Maharashtra Special Public Security Bill, 2024 Trade tact: On India’s trade policy focus The Hindu’s Daily Quiz Who is former President Donald Trump’s running mate in the 2024 presidential elections? Nikki Haley Doug Burgum JD Vance Marco Rubio To know the answer and to play the full quiz, click here. [logo] Editor's Pick 19 July 2024 [The Hindu logo] [EP Logo] Editor's Pick 19 July 2024 In the Editor's Pick newsletter, The Hindu explains why a story was important enough to be carried on the front page of today's edition of our newspaper. [View in browser]( [More newsletters]( At least 2 dead, 31 injured as train derails in U.P.’s Gonda [Two persons were killed and 31 injured as the Chandigarh-Dibrugarh Express derailed and eight of its coaches overturned in Gonda district of Uttar Pradesh on Thursday.]( “Train number 15904 Chandigarh-Dibrugarh Express that left Wednesday night from Chandigarh derailed near Gonda Junction station between Motiganj and Jhilahi railway stations around 2.37 p.m. on Thursday under the jurisdiction of North Eastern Railway [NER],” said Sabyasachi De, Chief Public Relations Officer for the Northeast Frontier Railway. Tribhuvan Narayan, the loco-pilot, is safe. He, as well as other passengers, reportedly heard a loud explosive sound seconds before the derailment of the eight coaches. A 40-member medical team and 15 ambulances arrived at the spot and more medical teams and ambulances were rushed there as well, said Uttar Pradesh Relief Commissioner G.S. Naveen Kumar. The Union Railway Ministry has ordered a high-level committee to investigate the incident, apart from an inquiry to be conducted by the Commissioner of Railway Safety. Railway officials said that it was too early to draw definitive conclusions and that the cause of the accident is still being ascertained. Experts said there are multiple possible causes of derailment, including defects in the tracks or the bogies. Due to the accident, all up-and-down movement along the line was stopped. Two passenger trains between Gonda and Gorakhpur were cancelled and 11 trains diverted. Affected passengers were transported in buses from the accident site to Mankapur station, from where the Railways arranged for a special rake to transport them to the train’s final destination of Dibrugarh in Assam. In a post on X, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sharma said he was monitoring the situation closely and that teams were on standby for support. An enhanced ex-gratia amount of ₹10 lakh for the kin of those who died, along with ₹2.5 lakh for those with grievous injuries, and ₹50,000 to those with minor or simple injuries has been announced by the railways. [The Opposition launched a near-unified attack on the Modi government, questioning the lapses in safety measures](. Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge slammed the government in a post on X. “PM @narendramodi and his Railway Minister, who leave no opportunity for self-publicity, must take direct responsibility of the massive lapses that have plagued the Indian Railways,” he said, noting that just a month ago, 11 people had died when a goods train collided with the Sealdah-Agartala Kanchanjunga Express. He demanded the expeditious installation of the Kavach anti-collision system on all rail routes across India to prevent such accidents. After the[Kanchanjunga Express mishap]( the Commissioner of Railway Safety had said the accident was “waiting to happen”. The probe report, Mr. Kharge said, pointed out failure of automatic signals, and lapses at multiple levels. The much-touted anti-collision device, Kavach, was not installed on this route. Progress on implementation of Kavach has been slow because of lack of vendors. According to the Railway Board, the Kavach system is operational in only 1,500 km. The entire Railways spans nearly 68,000 km. [Despite rising accidents, Kavach work has been on the slow track]( The Hindu’s Editorials [Arrow][​Questionable intent: On the Maharashtra Special Public Security Bill, 2024]( [Arrow][Trade tact: On India’s trade policy focus]( The Hindu’s Daily Quiz Who is former President Donald Trump’s running mate in the 2024 presidential elections? - Nikki Haley - Doug Burgum - JD Vance - Marco Rubio To know the answer and to play the full quiz, [click here.]( [Sign up for free]( Today’s Best Reads [[NITI Aayog and policymaking | Explained] NITI Aayog and policymaking | Explained]( [[Watch: Police encounters: Case closure or burial of truth? | Focus Tamil Nadu] Watch: Police encounters: Case closure or burial of truth? | Focus Tamil Nadu]( [[Suryakumar replaces Hardik as T20I captain] Suryakumar replaces Hardik as T20I captain]( [[No ticket, no party posts: BJP in Bengal has failed to engage Muslim community] No ticket, no party posts: BJP in Bengal has failed to engage Muslim community]( Copyright© 2024, THG PUBLISHING PVT LTD. 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