A major crisis was averted after the loco pilot of the Kalindi Express located an LPG cylinder on the tracks in the Shivrajpur area of Uttar Pradesh's Kanpur district on Sunday. The train was reportedly heading towards Bhiwani in Haryana from Prayagraj in Uttar Pradesh. The incident occurred on Sunday morning when the train's locomotive pilot spotted an LPG cylinder and other suspicious items on the tracks. He immediately applied the brakes, however, the train failed to stop in time and ended up hitting the cylinder before coming to a halt.
The cylinder flew off the track and landed at a distance after being hit by the train, averting a major mishap. After the authorities received information about the incident around 8:20 am, they reached the site and launched an investigation into the matter. The forensics team was also called in as the Railway Protection Force (RPF) started a probe into the matter.
Additional Commissioner of Police (Law and Order) Harish Chandra told news agency PTI, that the loco pilot saw that the LPG cylinder was placed on the tracks and applied the emergency brakes. He said that after the incident, the loco pilot informed the gateman and guard about it. The ACP said the train stopped at the incident site for about 20 minutes following this, it was stopped again at the Bilhaur station for further investigation.
"The damaged cylinder has been recovered. A bottle of petrol and matchboxes were also recovered from the spot," he told PTI. He stated that efforts were being made to identify the culprits, and they will face strong consequences.
"All angles are being probed, and a detailed investigation is underway," Chander told ANI. The obstruction has been cleared, and train services have resumed. Authorities are trying to understand the motive behind the incident, ensuring safety measures are in place across the area.