From Jnaneshwari to Indore-Patna: Accidents portray Indian Railways in poor light

The Indore-Patna Express derailment in Pukhrayan in Kanpur will go down in history as one of the most tragical train accidents in India. As of Monday, it had killed 142 and injured more than 200. While a probe has been ordered, and compensations announced, the history of Indian Railways is not very bright when it comes to safety. And this isn’t the first time that precious lives were lost in the tracks, as reports indicate that Indian Railways has a very poor track record. Here are some of the deadliest train accidents from 2010.

2010

28 May: Jnaneshwari Deluxe Express, West Bengal, 170 killed

The most tragic of all train accidents in India, on 28 May, 2010 night, five coaches of the Jnaneshwari Deluxe Express derailed from the tracks and collided with a goods train, killing 170 passengers. According to BBC, the tracks were sabotaged by Maoist rebels. However, Maoists declined any involvement in the accident. The accident took place in the Jhargram area of West Midnapore, about 150 km (90 miles) west of Calcutta. A railway official told BBC that “the incident happened at 0130 IST when it was still dark, which meant the driver had failed to see the damaged track”.

18 July: Vananchal Express at Sainthia station, West Bengal, 60 killed and 80 injured

At 2 am on 18 July, 2010, the Vananchal Express running between Cooch Bihar and Kolkata crashed into a train waiting at Sainthia Station in West Bengal. Officials said they believed driver error was responsible for the incident, but Mamata Banerjee, who was then railways minister said she was suspicious about the cause, NYT had reported. The train accident killed around 60 people and injured 80. This was the second train accident in less than two months after Jnaneshwari Deluxe Express.

2011

July 11: Delhi-bound Howrah-Kalka Mail, 80 killed and more than 350 injured

A passenger train derailed near Fatehpur, about 80 km (50 miles) southwest of Kanpur city in the northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh on 11 July, 2011. Rain made rescue work very difficult, and according to a report by The Indian Express, there were no survivors in two bogies, S1 and S2.

2012

30 July: Tamil Nadu Express, 32 killed and 25 injured

A coach of the Tamil Nadu Express, running from Delhi to Chennai, caught fire near Nellore, around 500 kilometres from Hyderabad, when most of the passengers were asleep. The fire killed 30 passengers

2013

28 December: Bangalore-Nanded Express, fire kills 26 and injures 8

According to The Times of India, 26 passengers in coach B1 of the Bangalore-Nanded Express were charred to death and eight injured in the fire that started around 3.45 am on 28 December 2013 at Kothacheruvu station near Puttaparthy in Ananthpur district of Andhra Pradesh.

2014

26 May: Gorakhdham Express, 40 killded and more than 150 injured

More than 40 people died and over 150 were injured in the Gorakhdham Express train accident as the Gorakhpur-bound train rammed into a goods train at Chureb station between Basti and Gorakhpur in Uttar Pradesh on 26 May, 2014. According to Rediff.com, the accident took place around 10.45 am when the Gorakhdham Express hit a stationary goods train near the outer signal of Chureb railway station. The passenger train was running behind schedule but apparently due to some fault, it was given a green signal to move on even as a goods train was waiting on the same track.

2015

20 March: Dehradun-Varanasi Janta Express, 38 killed and 150 injured

The engine and two coaches of the Dehradun-Varanasi Janta Express derailed near Bachrawan railway station in UP’s Rae Bareli on 20 March, 2015 killing 38 and injuring more than 150. According to a news report, published by The Times of India, the locomotive driver apparently overshot the signal and as a result, the engine and two adjoining coaches derailed.

First Published On : Nov 21, 2016 18:39 IST