Hoshiarpur (Punjab): A goods train travelled around 78 km from Jammu and Kashmir's Kathua to Punjab's Hoshiarpur without the driver and his assistant. No casualties or injuries were reported. Railway minister Ashwini Vaishnaw has ordered an inquiry into the matter.
It is being told that the freight train had halted at the Kathua railway station and started rolling down a slope gradient track. It travelled all the way to Hoshiarpur where it was brought to a stop on a steep gradient near Unchi Bassi railway station. Railway officials said that wooden stoppers were installed for halting the train.
According to information available from the spot, when the train halted at Kathua railway station, the driver got down without applying a handbrake following which, the train started rolling due to the slope towards Punjab's Pathankot. When the railway officials came to know about the incident, they tried to stop it at the Kathua railway station itself, but failed because the train had already gained speed and soon it was running above 80 km per hour.
The Kathua railway station officials immediately contacted their counterparts at Sujanpur railway station in Pathankot and an attempt was made to halt the train. But this time too the attempt failed. After which, successive attempts were made at Pathankot Cantt, Kandrodi, Mirthal, Bangla and Mukerian stations.
Eventually, the speed of the train started decreasing and it was finally stopped with wooden stoppers near Uchi Bassi railway station in Hoshiarpur.
The traffic manager of the Jammu Railway Division said that efforts are on to find out the cause of the incident. An investigation into the matter has been initiated to identify security lapses so as to prevent similar incidents in the future.
Officials are also taking precautionary measures like implementing strict safety protocols, regular maintenance along with ensuring proper train brake and signaling systems to avoid such incidents.
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