Dibrugarh Express Accident: UP Police Denies Loco Pilot's 'Explosion' Claim As Railways Begins Probe

The loco pilot of the Chandigarh-Dibrugarh Express claimed that he heard a 'loud explosion' right before the coaches of the train derailed.

Chandigarh-Dibrugarh Train Accident: The Uttar Pradesh Police on Thursday denied the claims of an explosion made by the loco pilot of the Chandigarh-Dibrugarh Express before the train derailed between Motiganj and Jhilahi railway stations in Gonda district. The death toll in the train derailment rose to four, while 31 people were injured in the incident, news agency PTI reported, citing an official.

A high-level investigation into the train accident has begun to uncover the reason behind the accident On Thursday, the loco pilot of the train claimed that he heard a "loud explosion" right before the coaches of the train derailed.

A similar claim was also made by a passenger who was onboard the train. "I had to go to Hajipur... There was a mild explosion before the incident, and after that, a strong jolt was felt, and our coach derailed. We were coming from Chandigarh..." he had claimed, as quoted by news agency ANI.

DGP Prashant Kumar denied the claims and said that there was no explosion in the train accident, as reported by India Today.

Eight coaches of the train had derailed between Motiganj and Jhilahi railway stations, about 150 km from the state capital, on the Gonda-Gorakhpur section of the Northeast Railway on Thursday afternoon. The train was en route to Dibrugarh and derailed at 2:37 pm between Motiganj and Jhilahi railway stations.

Following the claim of explosion made by the loco pilot, the Anti-Terrorism Squad of the Uttar Pradesh Police was set to probe the train accident.

High-Level Probe Underway

According to a railway official, a high-level investigation into the train accident has begun to ascertain the cause behind the derailment, PTI reported. After reaching the spot last night, the railway technical team collected samples from the accident site and took photographs.

A railway official said the restoration work was carried out through the night using light from a generator. A team of about 800 railway employees has been engaged in repair work since Friday morning, he further stated.

General Manager of Northeast Railway Saumya Mathur was present at the spot and monitoring the situation, officials said.

The damaged coaches have been separated using a gas cutter, while the work of straightening and removing the overturned coaches using a JCB and crane is underway, as reported by PTI. Preparations are also underway to lay the rail track that was completely uprooted in the accident afresh, they said.

According to officials, the Gonda-Gorakhpur rail section is a fully electrified line. Electric poles and electric wires were completely destroyed in the accident, and work is underway to re-install them.

Mathur told PTI Videos, "Our effort is to ensure that the down line is restored at the earliest. The up line was restored for diesel (locomotive) last night itself." The railway ministry said on Thursday that a high-level inquiry has been ordered, apart from the probe by the Commission of Railway Safety.