Sealdah: A major accident was averted after there was grazing collision between a derailed local train another local train in the Sealdah section on Wednesday noon. The alertness of the locopilot played a key role in averting a tragedy. Movement of trains has been temporarily stopped on both up and down lines but no train has been cancelled so far.
Eklavya Chakraborty, Chief Public Relations Officer, Eastern Railway said, "The matter is being looked into. An inquiry committee has been constituted for this. They have been asked to submit a report at the earliest." The Ranaghat local's engine room was damaged due to the derailment. Efforts are underway to resume the halted trains as soon as possible.
Meanwhile, the passengers onboard Ranaghat local did not have any problem as the train was evacuated immediately after the accident. The passengers reached the platform after walking along the railway line.
It is suspected that there may have been a confusion of signals which led to the accident however, the exact reason behind the incident is yet to be ascertained. While the train Naihati Matrubhumi local 11434 was being taken to the carshed, it got derailed slightly and collided with the nearby Ranaghat local. The driver's alertness, however, helped in avoiding a major accident. Railway sources said that the driver of the Naihati Matrubhumi local has been suspended.
