Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Sunday had a telephonic conversation with Prime Minister Narendra Modi during which he briefed him about the train accident situation while emphasising the treatment of injured passengers. During the conversation, he noted that doctors, medical students, and other healthcare service providers are doing their best to help the injured. Patnaik during the call told the Prime Minister that all steps have been taken in order to save the lives of the injured passengers in different hospitals in Odisha.
Odisha CM Patnaik said that the state follows the policy of "Every Life Is Precious", news agency PTI reported. He went on to emphasise that the state government has left no stone unturned in saving lives be it the rescue operations, carrying the injured to the hospital, or making arrangements for their treatment. While elaborating on the latest developments, he said that around 1,175 patients were admitted to various hospitals out of which 793 got discharged and 382 are still undergoing treatment in government and private hospitals. He further added that the majority of the injured are in stable condition.
PM Modi thanked Patnaik for the prompt and efficient action of the Odisha government during the crisis. He also praised the people of Odisha for their valuable support, reported PTI.
A release issued by CMO quoted the Prime Minister as saying that the Centre is ready to provide any kind of assistance if required.
Both PM Modi and Patnaik visited the train accident site at Bahanga Bazar in Balasore district on Saturday.
What Went Down
The crash involving Bengaluru-Howrah Superfast Express and Shalimar-Chennai Central Coromandel Express, which were carrying around 2,500 passengers, and a goods train occurred around 7 PM on Friday near the Bahanaga Bazar station in Balasore, about 250 km south of Kolkata and 170 km north of Bhubaneswar. The Bengaluru-Howrah Superfast Express which was coming at high speed rammed into the coaches of Coromandel Express that had scattered on the adjacent track. Twenty-one coaches were derailed and severely damaged in the accident, trapping hundreds of passengers. Both passenger trains were at a high speed and it has been cited by experts as one of the main reasons for the high number of casualties, as reported by PTI.
The rescue operation was wrapped up Saturday afternoon and restoration work started. With traffic on the route disrupted, over 150 trains were cancelled, diverted, or short-terminated.
Preliminary investigations into the train crash have revealed that a signal was given to Coromandel Express to enter the main line but it was taken off and the train entered the loop line and crashed into a goods train parked there, as reported by the news agency PTI.
Earlier on Saturday, Investigators were looking into any human error, signal failure, and other possible causes behind the three-train crash as officials submitted a preliminary inquiry report into the worst rail accident in India in nearly three decades.